Epidemiology of cancer of the digestive tract in Senegal. Review of 18,000 endoscopies performed at the Principal Hospital of Dakar

314 alimentary tract cancers were discovered in 219 black males and 95 black females at the occasion of 18.000 endoscopies (high or low) performed during the 5 past years at the Principal Hospital (Dakar-Senegal). Mean age of the patients was 50, gastric cancer (170 cases) was the most frequent localization, then rectocolonic one (71 cases) and oesophageal one (61 cases). The more frequent utilization of endoscopy and may be a modification of diet in urban milieu might explain such a high frequency of discovery of alimentary tract cancers in Dakar.