Background: The aim of this paper was to present the incidence rates of leukemia and multiple myeloma(MM) in Golestan province located in northeastern Iran during 2004-2009. Materials and Methods: This wasa descriptive cross-sectional study. Data on newly diagnosed (incident) leukemia and MM cases were obtainedfrom collected from Golestan population-based cancer registry. Data was entered into CanReg-4 software. Agestandardized incidence rates (ASR) (per 100000 person-years) for leukemia and MM were calculated. Data onGolestan population was obtained from the data of Iranian national census in 2006. Results: Totally, 11036 newcancer cases were registered in GPRC from 2004-2009. Leukemia and MM accounted for 693 and 124 of cases,respectively. The mean age in patients with leukemia and MM was 43.8 and 62.4 years, respectively. The ASRsfor leukemia among men and women were 10.4 and 7.8, respectively (p<0.001). The ASRs for MM were 2.1 and2 in men and women, respectively (p=0.93). The rate of leukemia was significantly higher in rural areas (p=0.02)whereas the incidence of MM was higher in urban areas (p<0.001). Conclusions: Our results showed a highincidence rate of leukemia in Golestan province of Iran. The incidence of leukemia was significantly higher inmales and residents of rural areas. High exposure to pesticides and other agricultural related products may be apossible explanation for epidemiological pattern of leukemia in this area. Determining and controlling importantrisk factors, especially environmental factors, of leukemia may lead to decrease in its burden in Golestan provinceof Iran.
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