Toward a comprehensive cancer registration in Germany

Area of Science:

• Oncology
• Public Health
• Health Informatics

Background:

• Germany initiated clinical cancer registration nationwide in 2013.
• This initiative serves as the foundation for comprehensive clinical and population-based cancer registries (CRs).
• Standardized cancer data collection requires nationwide definitions, a common registration model, standard data sets, and sustainable funding.

Purpose of the Study:

• To present the current status of clinical cancer registration implementation in Germany.
• To highlight the synergies between clinical and population-based cancer registries.
• To identify ongoing challenges and future efforts required for comprehensive cancer registration.

Main Methods:

• Review of the implementation status of clinical cancer registration across German federal states.
• Analysis of tools and methods for data collection, processing, and statistical analysis.
• Evaluation of implemented tasks for both clinical and population-based cancer registries.

Main Results:

• Numerous tasks of clinical and population-based CRs are already operational in Germany.
• CRs are utilized for quality assurance, cancer center certification, and guideline adherence analysis.
• CRs provide population-based cancer burden data and support collaborative research on cancer etiology, screening, and care.

Conclusions:

• Significant progress has been made in implementing various cancer registry functions in Germany.
• Substantial challenges persist, particularly in harmonizing data collection and ensuring data completeness and validity.
• Continued efforts are crucial for developing standards and methods to achieve comprehensive cancer registration.