Health - AOK: Fewer cancer patients in Frankfurt than in the rest of Hesse
In Frankfurt, according to AOK, a lower percentage of residents were diagnosed with cancer than in other regions of Hesse. The health insurance fund announced this on Thursday in Bad Homburg, referring to a complex calculation procedure with the diagnosis data of the entire population. According to the latest AOK Health Atlas, for example, 3.58% of the female population in the Hersfeld-Rotenburg district had breast cancer, while in Frankfurt it was only 1.94%.
This disparity was also confirmed for both genders in terms of colon cancer with 1.18% in the Hersfeld-Rotenburg district and 0.56% in Frankfurt. The same was true for prostate cancer with 4.13% among the male population in the Hersfeld-Rotenburg district and 1.92% in Frankfurt. Even for black skin cancer, this difference was registered at 0.66% for males and females in the Hersfeld-Rotenburg district and 0.30% in Frankfurt.
The AOK declined to comment on the reason for this unequal distribution when asked. It's speculation - the causes could be varied, they said. According to the Statistical State Office, 16,370 people in Hesse died of cancer in 2022 - two percent more than in the previous year and ten percent more than in 2002.
- The AOK health insurance fund is based in Hesse, specifically in Bad Homburg.
- Interestingly, Hersfeld-Rotenburg, another district in Hesse, has higher disease rates compared to Frankfurt, as evidenced by the AOK statistics.
- For instance, 3.58% of women in Hersfeld-Rotenburg have been diagnosed with breast cancer, a higher percentage compared to the 1.94% in Frankfurt.
- A similar trend is observed for men with prostate cancer, as the AOK Health Atlas shows a higher incidence rate in Hersfeld-Rotenburg (4.13%) compared to Frankfurt (1.92%).
