Female urogenital malignancies differ considerably from each other with respect to their
incidence and geographical distribution. So far, no comprehensive studies have been carried
out on the occurrence of these neoplasms in the Republic of Suriname. In this study, we
determined their incidence in Suriname between 1980 and 2004, stratified these findings
according to anatomical location, age group, and ethnic background, and compared these with
international data. Patient information was obtained from the Pathologic Anatomy Laboratory,
relevant population data from the General Bureau of Statistics. Sex-specific rates were
calculated for overall cancers and for all anatomical sites (kidneys, urinary bladder, corpus
uteri, cervix uteri, ovaria, Fallopian tubes, vagina, and vulva), and stratified according to age
groups 0 - 19, 20 - 49, and 50+ years, and the largest ethnic groups: viz. Hindustani, Creole,
and Javanese. From these data, average rates were calculated and expressed as means ±
SDs per year or per 100,000 women per year. The rate for overall cancers was approximately
34. The most common malignancy was cervical cancer, which was encountered in
approximately two-thirds of patients. Endometrial and ovarian cancer occupied the second and
third place, respectively, appearing at rates of about 7 and 3, respectively. Vaginal, vulvar,
urinary bladder, and kidney cancer were each diagnosed once or twice per year. The
frequency of overall cancers as well as that of cervical and endometrial cancer increased from
almost 0 in age group 0 – 19 years to 14 – 17 in age groups 20 - 49 and 50+ years, with no
significant differences between the two latter groups. Urogenital malignancies seemed to affect
Hindustanis as often as Creoles (rates of 8 - 10) but might occur less often in Javanese (rate of
about 6). Our results suggest that Suriname represents a middle- to high-risk country for
cervical cancer but a low-risk country for other female urogenital malignancies, and that these
tumors may have a predilection for both older and younger women of Hindustani and Creole
background rather than those with a Javanese background.