Article
Benefits for cancer care, clinicians and research by introduction of modern techniques of population-based cancer registration and enhanced data use in Saarland (IMPROVE project)
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Authors
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Bernd Holleczek
- Ministerium für Justiz, Gesundheit und Soziales, Gesundheitsberichtserstattung Saarland -Krebsregister, Saarbrücken, Deutschland
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Christa Stegmaier
- Ministerium für Justiz, Gesundheit und Soziales, Gesundheitsberichtserstattung Saarland -Krebsregister, Saarbrücken
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Hartwig Ziegler
- Ministerium für Justiz, Gesundheit und Soziales, Gesundheitsberichtserstattung Saarland -Krebsregister, Saarbrücken
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Volker Arndt
- Deutsches Zentrum für Alternsforschung, Abteilung Epidemiologie, Heidelberg; Deutsches Krebsforschungszentrum, Abteilung Klinische Epidemiologie und Alternsforschung, Heidelberg
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Hermann Brenner
- Deutsches Zentrum für Alternsforschung, Abteilung Epidemiologie, Heidelberg; Deutsches Krebsforschungszentrum, Abteilung Klinische Epidemiologie und Alternsforschung, Heidelberg
| Published: | March 20, 2006 |
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Outline
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Background: Traditional tasks of population-based cancer registration are the provision of data for cancer incidence, mortality and long-term survival of cancer patients. Cancer registries may also contribute to the evaluation of clinical care but more detailed data are needed than are currently available. For example, breast centers require extensive data on tumor spread at diagnosis, quality of care, and stage-specific long-term outcomes (quality of life, survival).
Concept of the IMPROVE project: Funded by the “Deutsche Krebshilfe”, the Saarland Cancer Registry has started a three years project to improve its capabilities to provide more detailed, clinically relevant data on the occurrence and long-term outcome of cancer to address the specific needs of health care providers, clinicians and research (IMPROVE project).
In particular, the project’s aims are the completion of the registry’s existing database regarding clinically relevant information, the implementation of a computer based system to facilitate up-to-date notification of cancer cases including transmission of relevant information from electronic medical records systems and the estimation of long-term outcomes for cancer patients according to clinically relevant prognostic factors.
First results and perspectives: There is broad interest and cooperation of the diagnostics and health care providers in Saarland concerning the current activities of the completion of the registry database by active acquisition out of clinical patient records. First results suggest a clear augmentation of data quality and completeness.
A survey has been carried out amongst hospitals and practitioners in Saarland to assess their attitudes and expectations towards a computer based reporting system. Here, a majority of clinicians and practitioners express their high interest in computer-based tools to facilitate timely and comprehensive reporting of relevant information to the cancer registry. Development of such tools will be initiated shortly, taking the specific needs of the various potential users into account.
Both the retrospectively completed data and the data collected prospectively by computer based reporting tools shall serve as a basis for detailed monitoring of cancer care and long-term outcomes in Saarland.
The current and future capabilities of the Saarland Cancer Registry as a data provider are presented using the specific needs of information by breast centers as an example.
