Social inequality in morbidity and mortality from oral and oropharyngeal cancer in the city of Sao Paulo, Brazil: 1997-2008

Occupation of geographical space is historically determined by the socioeconomic model and the dynamism of its social, political, and ideological relations. This study aimed to evaluate the spatial distribution of morbidity and mortality from cancer of the mouth and oropharynx and related socioeconomic variables in the city of Seto Paulo, Brazil, from 1997 to 2008. Data were collected from the Population-Based Cancer Registry and the Program for Improvement of Mortality Data (PRO-AIM) and were georeferenced using Terra-view and GeoDa. The theoretical framework for evaluating the results was the work of Milton Santos. The incidence rates showed spatial auto-correlation with a Global Moran index of 0.226 and mortality rates of 0.337. Incidence of cancer of the mouth and oropharynx did not show a well-defined spatial pattern in the city of Seto Paulo, but mortality rates were highly unequal, concentrating the lowest rates in the central area of the city, which is wealthier and economically less unequal.