Why cancer tracking is critical. Why strong cancer registries are needed in every state.

1. Cancer Tracking:The State of the NationJames S. Marks, M.D., M.P.H.DirectorChronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion

2. “ If the United States is to reduce the human and financial costs of chronic diseases with effective public health prevention efforts, the first step is to establish a tracking capacity for chronic diseases and environmental exposures.” Source: Transition Report to the New Administration: Strengthening our Public Health Defense Against Environmental Threats. January 2001, The PEW ENVIROMENTAL HEALTH COMMISSION

3. Why cancer tracking is critical. • Why strong cancer registries are needed in every state. • The present and future of cancer registries.

4. State Cancer Registries PURPOSE: • Is progress occurring? • Are specific populations at higher risk? • Are cancer prevention and control efforts having the expected effect? • Where and how would resources be best used? • Evaluate clusters, quality of care and new interventions.

5. CDC’s National Program of Cancer Registries • Providing national leadership by helping states and territories: • Fund all 45 states not wholly funded by SEER • Recommend standards for data completeness, timeliness, and quality • Modernize and computerize reporting and data-processing • Develop laws and regulations that promote quality registries

6. DC DC NAACCR*-Certified State Cancer Registries 1998 1997 2000 2002 *North American Association of Central Cancer Registries Certification of data from cancers diagnosed 1995, 1996, 1998, 2000

7. Female Breast Cancer Cases Diagnosed at Early StageMichigan, 1985–1987 Percentageof Cases < 39.1 39.1–48.1 48.2–55.9 56 & over

8. Female Breast Cancer Cases Diagnosed at Early StageMichigan, 1995–1997 Percentageof Cases < 39.1 39.1–48.1 48.2–55.9 56 & over

9. Patterns of Care Study • Two studies examining four cancer sites:  breast, prostate, colon and ovarian.  • Compares quality of treatment data reported to NPCR registries with data from medical records • Population-based samples estimate proportion of patients who receive recommended standard of care

11. What is the Present and Future of Cancer Registries • Trust for America’s Health- “Improving Cancer Tracking Today Saves Lives Tomorrow: Do States Make the Grade?” is an interim report in establishing systems and great growth in the quality of data. • The future is to use cancer registries for issues of cancer prevention, detection and care. • To serve as a model, as implied in the first Trust For America’s Health report, “America’s Environmental Health Gap: Why the Country Needs a Nationwide Health Tracking Network” for the tracking of critical chronic disease health problems of our time.

12. The Cancer Weapon America Needs Most “ Although not as glamorous, cancer tabulation can be more important in the fight against cancer than performing an intricate operation or an elegant experiment. A network of cancer registries can be our most potent new weapon against the disease. “ Source: Healey JH. The cancer weapon America needs most. Reader’s Digest June 1992;140(842):69–72.

13. The Cancer Weapon America Needs Most “ People do not naturally rally round a cause like cancer record-keeping because no one can point to victims who will suffer without it. Rather, it is our larger understanding of cancer that suffers. And thus, we are all victims. “ Source: Healey JH. The cancer weapon America needs most. Reader’s Digest June 1992;140(842):69–72.