Abstract
The Sami population living in Northern Finland represents a specific genetic background and a way of life that is different from other Finns. A cohort of 2,100 Sami and 4,174 non‐Sami people from the 2 northernmost municipalities of Finland on 31 December 1978 was identified from the national Population Register and followed up through the Finnish Cancer Registry for cancer incidence during 1979–1998. There were 111 cancer cases among the Sami, while the expected number based on the average cancer incidence in the Finnish population was 173. Among the non‐Sami cohort members, there were 226 cases of cancer vs. 224 expected cases. The Sami had significantly decreased incidence of cancers of the prostate [standardised incidence ratio (SIR) 0.25; 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.08–0.58] and breast (SIR 0.36; 95% CI 0.14–0.73), similarly for both localised and nonlocalised tumours. Low SIRs were also observed for bladder cancer (SIR 0.28; 97% CI 0.03–0.99) basal cell carcinoma of the skin (SIR 0.12; 95% CI 0.03–0.30) and other nonmelanoma skin cancers (SIR 0; 95% CI 0–0.63). In contrast to other subcategories of the Sami, the Skolts, whose lifestyle stems from areas that now belong to Russia, showed a nonreduced overall cancer risk and a significantly elevated risk for stomach cancer (SIR 3.8; 95% CI 1.5–7.8). The low cancer incidence among the other Sami populations in Finland cannot be fully explained by their specific way of life. It seems likely that the Sami ethnicity carries a reduced cancer incidence level. Although many Sami have been exposed to radioactive fallout from the nuclear weapon tests via their reindeer‐rich diet, this does not seem to affect their cancer risk. © 2002 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.