Marin County Cancer Rates Above Average, Preliminary Study Results Indicate

Breast cancer rates in Marin County are higher than rates in 33 demographically similar counties nationwide, and overall cancer rates in Marin are higher than the national average, researchers from the University of California-San Francisco's Family Health Outcomes Project said Friday, the San Jose Mercury News reports. UCSF researchers, who worked with the Marin Cancer Project -- an advocacy group -- reviewed census data from 1970 and 2000 for Marin and 33 other counties and found that Marin's breast cancer rate was the highest among the 33 counties, with 170 cases per 100,000 residents. In addition, Marin's prostate cancer rate was the second highest among the 33 counties, with 212 cases per 100,000 residents, while its overall cancer rate was 515 cases per 100,000 people, ranking eighth among the examined counties. According to the National Cancer Institute, on average, there are 469 cases of all types of cancer, 134 cases of breast cancer and 165 cases of prostate cancer for every 100,000 people nationwide. Linda Remy, research director of the Family Health Outcomes Project, said, "We're trying to find out whether it's about the people or the place." Remy said that the study did not consider why cancer rates in Marin County may be higher than the national average but added that future studies would consider the issue (Feder Ostrov, San Jose Mercury News, 11/2).