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The reliability of Cancer Registry records
M C Gulliford1, J Bell, H M Bourne
1Department of Public Health Medicine, United Medical School, London, UK.
British Journal of Cancer
|April 1, 1993
Summary
Cancer registry data for bladder cancer patients showed high reliability for tumor morphology and continuous variables. However, accuracy for tumor staging in clinical records requires improvement for comprehensive cancer surveillance.
Area of Science:
- Oncology
- Epidemiology
- Health Informatics
Background:
- Cancer registries are crucial for epidemiological studies and cancer surveillance.
- Accurate data abstraction from medical records is essential for validating registry information.
- Bladder cancer data quality is important for understanding disease trends and outcomes.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess the reliability of data from the Thames Cancer Registry.
- To compare registry data with independently abstracted medical record data for bladder cancer patients.
- To evaluate data accuracy for various cancer characteristics, including morphology and stage.
Main Methods:
- Retrospective comparison of data for 466 bladder cancer patients diagnosed in 1982.
- Independent abstraction of data from medical records.
- Analysis of agreement levels for continuous variables, tumor morphology, and tumor stage.
Main Results:
- High agreement observed between registry data and medical records for five continuous variables.
- Tumor morphology data showed high levels of agreement.
- Data on tumor stage did not consistently differentiate between superficial and invasive tumors.
- Cancer registry data were generally reliable, with noted exceptions in tumor staging documentation.
Conclusions:
- Thames Cancer Registry data are largely reliable for bladder cancer surveillance.
- Tumor staging data require careful review due to potential inconsistencies in clinical record documentation.
- Improvements in clinical record-keeping for tumor stage could enhance registry data accuracy.