The Statistical Significance of Age and Race to Predict Cancer's Onset Site. Are Social Deprivation or Region Significant ? A Study in Scotland

The site of cancer onset is analyzed through its co-occurrence patterns with demographic factors, which can be statistically regarded as causes for its dissemination among patient segments (cohorts) or populations. This study examines these factors as cancer risk elements, aiming to formulate prevention strategies and enhance treatment and control measures. Open demographic data from Scotland, including age, gender, deprivation, and race, are correlated with onset sites, facilitating the tracking of cancer incidence to guide public health policies. The research employs an innovative approach to investigate non-clinical factors as alternatives for predicting cancer sites by assessing the statistical significance of various factors in relation to cancer development. The focus is on 25 distinct sites. The data corroborate the link between specific demographic conditions and cancer onset sites, which is evaluated using statistical methods such as the Z-test. The findings highlight how social factors can reveal variations among these sites, determining which site is predominant when a particular factor is present. The data are categorized and modeled as individual site distributions per factor to enable the application of the tests. The results indicate that, among the demographic conditions analyzed, social deprivation is not a significant factor, contrary to the prevalent belief, while age and race emerge as influential. The conclusion drawn is that age and race can contribute to the formation of cancer patient cohorts, revealing notable differences in patient profiles across various cancer sites. This insight can also assist in the development of policies aimed at addressing cancer progression from a demographic perspective.