Effects of Migration on Cancer Incidence and Resources for Prevention and Treatment in Florida

Migration adds a complex dimension to the task of those who plan and allocate resources for health care. The authors offer a methodology for estimating the contribution of migration to the incidence of cancer, allow for age- and sex-specific cancer risks, and estimate, by county, the impact of recent migration on the annual incidence of cancer in Florida. Cancer and migration data were used to develop estimates of the number of cancer cases for Florida counties that were attributable to recent migrants. A net gain and loss ratio was calculated for new cancer cases in 1980 resulting from the 1975-80 migration pattern. Florida data was used because that State has one of the highest crude cancer incidence rates in the nation, is one of the most pupulous States, and has a population growth from migration rather than from natural increase. Preliminary findings on the relationship between cancer health services resources and net cancer rates from migration are discussed. County cancer health services resources had a strong positive relationship to population size, but the impact of migration on cancer incidence was in a curvilinear relationship to population size.