Testicular germ cell tumors (TGCTs) are the most common cancers among young men in the United States. Incidence rates among non-Hispanic White (NHW) men historically have been much higher than the rates among other men. To study whether this pattern had changed, the authors examined trends in TGCT incidence for the years 1992-2021.
By using the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results 12 registries database, age-standardized incidence rates per 100,000 person-years and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated overall and by histologic type (seminoma and nonseminoma), age, stage at diagnosis, and race/ethnicity. Trends in 5-year survival also were examined.
The age-standardized incidence rate of TGCT per 100,000 person-years increased from 4.71 (95% CI, 4.39-5.05) in 1992 to 6.22 (95% CI, 5.88-6.58) in 2021. The rates increased for both seminoma (average annual percent change [AAPC], 0.57%; 95% CI, 0.40%-0.75%) and nonseminoma (AAPC, 1.41%; 95% CI, 1.17%-1.64%) and among all race/ethnic groups, although the rates stabilized among NHW men. Increases in incidence were greatest among Hispanic men (AAPC, 3.03%; 95% CI, 2.66%-3.40%), who had one of the youngest median ages at diagnosis and were more likely to be diagnosed at advanced stages compared with NHW men. Seminoma and nonseminoma rates among Hispanic men converged over the study period, whereas seminoma rates remained higher among most other groups.
Hispanic men now have the highest TGCT incidence rates in the United States, although the rates increased among all groups between 1992 and 2021. Racial/ethnic differences in rates require further investigation.
Cancer. 2025 Jan 15 [Epub]
Andrea A Almeida, Aika Wojt, Catherine Metayer, Peter A Kanetsky, Barry I Graubard, Christian S Alvarez, Katherine A McGlynn
Center for Prostate Disease Research, Murtha Cancer Center Research Program, Department of Surgery, Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, Bethesda, Maryland, USA., Division of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland, USA., Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, California, USA., Department of Cancer Epidemiology, H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center and Research Institute, Tampa, Florida, USA., Division of Intramural Research, National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland, USA.