# Trends in the incidence of cancers of the male genital system and urinary bladder in Harare, Zimbabwe, 1990–2019

## TL;DR

This study examines how cancer rates in male genital and urinary tract cancers changed in Harare, Zimbabwe, from 1990 to 2019.

## Contribution

The paper provides new insights into cancer incidence trends in an African population over three decades.

## Key findings

- Prostate cancer incidence increased rapidly, especially in the last decade.
- Bladder cancer rates declined in both males and females.
- Penile cancer rates rose significantly, while testicular cancer rates remained stable.

## Abstract

The cancer registry of Harare, Zimbabwe, founded in 1986 allows the study of the evolution of the cancer epidemic in a Black (African) population over a 30-year period, and is used to investigate trends in the incidence of cancers of the male genital system and urinary tract.

Age standardised incidence rates (ASRs) in the black (African) population of Harare are calculated for four cancers: prostate, testis and penis in men, and bladder in both sexes. Trends are expressed as the average annual percentage change in incidence.

The incidence of prostate cancer is very high (an ASR of 71.4 per 105) and over the period increased at a rate of 5.1% annually, but even faster (6.1%) in the most recent decade. The incidence of penile cancer is high, and has increased significantly (3.8% per year), while there was no change in the incidence of testicular cancer. Bladder cancer has shown significant declines in incidence in both sexes (1.9% annually in males, 3.8% in females). There has been little change in the histological composition of the bladder cancer cases in the last 25 years, with transitional cell carcinomas comprising some 50–60% of cancers.

While some of these trends are related to population-level changes in lifestyles, and exposure to environmental factors (such as HPV), the reasons for other changes in incidence are more obscure. Some may be in part due to improvements in diagnostic techniques (endoscopy and imaging), but others—e.g. bladder—merit further investigation.

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s10552-025-02044-w.