CDC Features

CDC Features

Providing Quality Cancer Data

Cancer registries, supported by CDC's National Program of Cancer Registries and the National Cancer Institute's Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results Program, collect information about cancer cases diagnosed and deaths from cancer to understand and address the nation's cancer burden.

Healthcare professionals studying images on computer monitor Public health professionals need information about cancer cases diagnosed (called incidence) and deaths from cancer (called mortality) to understand and address the nation's cancer burden. Cancer registries, supported by CDC's National Program of Cancer Registries (NPCR) or the National Cancer Institute's Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results (SEER) Program, collect incidence data. Mortality data are collected by CDC's National Vital Statistics System.

NPCR supports cancer registries in 45 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Pacific Island Jurisdictions. These data represent 96% of the U.S. population. Together, NPCR and the SEER Program collect data for the entire U.S. population.

How Cancer Data Are Collected

Medical facilities such as hospitals, doctor's offices, and pathology laboratories send information about cancer cases to their cancer registry. Most information comes from hospitals where highly trained employees called cancer registrars transfer the information from the patient's medical record to the registry's computer software using standardized codes. The data are then sent to the central cancer registry.

Every year, the cancer registries submit incidence data to NPCR or SEER, which jointly release the United States Cancer Statistics: Incidence and Mortality (USCS) report. This report contains no identifying information about individual patients.

How Cancer Data Are Used

The data are used to—

Monitor cancer trends over time.
Show cancer patterns in various populations.
Guide planning and evaluation of cancer control programs.
Help set priorities for allocating health resources.
Advance clinical, epidemiologic, and health services research.

Vital information about cancer cases and cancer deaths is necessary for health agencies to report on cancer trends, find out whether cancer prevention and control efforts are working, participate in research, and respond to reports of suspected increases in cancer occurrence.

In addition to the USCS report, NPCR uses the data from cancer registries for other research, including—

The Breast, Colon, and Prostate Cancer Data Quality and Patterns of Care Study used registry data on about 7,600 patients diagnosed in 1997 to describe the patterns of care they received and their quality of treatment. The current Breast and Prostate Cancer Data Quality and Patterns of Care Study is building on previous work to examine patterns of care and the quality of treatment further. The study is being conducted in collaboration with seven registries across the country for about 24,000 patients diagnosed with breast or prostate cancer in 2004. A recent study evaluated the use of adjuvant chemotherapy for surgically treated patients diagnosed with Stage III colon cancer residing in seven states covered by the CDC-NPCR program.
The Annual Report to the Nation on the Status of Cancer, 1975–2006, Featuring Colorectal Cancer Trends and Impact of Interventions (Risk Factors, Screening, and Treatment) to Reduce Future Rates published jointly by the American Cancer Society, CDC, the National Cancer Institute, and the North American Association of Central Cancer Registries, includes cancer incidence rates, death rates, and trends in the United States. The report found continued declines in both incidence and death rates for all cancers combined for both men and women.
A recent study compared the incidence rates of two types of breast cancer, invasive lobular cancers and invasive ductal cancers, to combined hormone replacement therapy use.

How States Are Using Cancer Registry Data

Increasing primary and secondary prevention activities

The Colorado Central Cancer Registry noted a higher breast cancer incidence and later stage at diagnosis in a north Denver census tract during one of their routine surveillance activities. They alerted their state counterparts in the National Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program and the National Comprehensive Cancer Control Program, who worked to increase awareness and services in this geographic area. The Colorado Central Cancer Registry monitored an increase in early stage breast cancer diagnoses—a marker that primary and secondary prevention activities are successful—over time.

Implementing a successful intervention by changing public policy

The Louisiana Tumor Registry collaborated with researchers from the Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center to develop a financial report on colorectal cancer incidence and death rates that was presented to state legislators and influenced policy. The presentation included data on the low-income and uninsured, a proposal for a colorectal cancer screening program, and an evaluation component based on linking Louisiana Tumor Registry data to the fiscal data. State funding was increased to support this new activity, and the Louisiana Tumor Registry will monitor trends and update legislators to show program outcomes and justify future funding.