Production cancer maps for Trabzon province using geographic information systems

SUMMARY Producing Cancer Maps for Trabzon Province Using Geographic Information Systems Cancer takes place as an important health issue nowadays. Forming cancer control programmes and putting strategic action plans into practice became important because it ranked as a second death reason and the density of its case increased. Examining variations of cancer cases in time and spatial is necessary to develop control strategies struggling cancer and to put cancer control programmes into practice. For examining these differences, the number of existing cancer cases has to be determined firstly. After providing cancer statistics with reliable data, cancer maps have to be created, and then, the geographical change of cancer cases have to be analyzed on these maps. Creating cancer maps is necessary for obtaining information about its cases in which region with which frequency, examining the distribution of cancer types geographically, and determining that which region has the highest density of its case. Consequently, control strategies struggling cancer is determined and how these measures have to be taken and in which region can be understood easily. On this study, database was built with the using of Geographical Information Systems (GIS) techniques for examining the distribution of cancer cases and statistical maps relating to cancer cases in allocation units were created. Cancer cases registered in 2004 by Cancer Struggle Department of Health Directorate of Trabzon Province were used for creating statistical cancer maps. Presenting cancer cases and related information on the maps were executed with the helping of GIS to increase the knowledge in value geographically. The distribution of cancer cases was presented on cancer maps including allocation units and incidence values were calculated for each allocation unit. Color-coding Maps including cancer rates in allocation units were created by the help of incidence values and allocation units having cancer rates more than expected level, according to the world standards, were determined. As a result of this, the distribution of cancer cases was examined geographically. Keywords: Cancer, Map, Geographic Information System, GIS, Health Information Systems, Trabzon, Turkey VI