2006 Cancer Registry Report

The Cancer Registry is essential to the success of the overall cancer program at Washington Adventist Hospital. Staffed by two CTRs (Certified Tumor Registrars), the Registry submits data quarterly on all newly diagnosed cancer cases to the Maryland Cancer Registry as required by state law.

Data Collection & Analysis

The Registry collects and analyzes cancer-related patient data including demographic, diagnostic, treatment, and follow-up information.

This data (with no patient identifiers) are available to physicians and administrators, and are used to benchmark treatment modalities by stage for site specific cancers and to help to demonstrate the need for and value of new services for Washington Adventist Hospital.

The cancer program at Washington Adventist Hospital, under the advisement and with the support of the Cancer Committee is actively seeking accreditation from the Commission on Cancer of the American College of Surgeons as a Community Hospital Cancer Program. This accreditation will further attest to Washington Adventist Hospital as a quality cancer center in the region. The Registry is assisting in assuring all COC standards are met by the multidisciplinary team when surveyed in 2007.

2005 Cancer Statistics

During the calendar year 2005 a total of 406 cancer cases were accessioned into the Washington Adventist Hospital cancer registry database. Of these, 353 (87%) were analytic -- newly diagnosed cancer cases. The top five sites seen in 2005 were breast, prostate, lung, colorectal and stomach cancers. These comprised 63.7% of the cancers seen.

All newly diagnosed cancer cases are staged by the managing physician using the sixth edition of the AJCC Cancer Staging Manual. Site specific staging forms become a part of the permanent medical record once a diagnosis of cancer is made. The managing physician completes the TNM (Tumor, Nodes, Metastases) and group stage (I, II, III, IV) to ensure accuracy of the data to be submitted. The Cancer Registry staff are available to support these activities and answer any questions that may arise, and are reachable at (301) 891-5710.

2005/2006 Colon Patient Care Evaluation

In 2005, the Commission on Cancer began a new initiative, the Cancer Program Practice Profile Report, to examine the quality of care based on specific process measures for approved programs across the nation. The first of these examined adherence to evidence-based guidelines for the treatment of Stage III colon cancer. The threshold set by the commission is >/= 80% of patients with stage III colon cancer should receive adjuvant chemotherapy. Due to small numbers, Washington Adventist Hospital chose to review data from both 2004 and 2005 to assure a level of accuracy. Findings demonstrate that in both years, 100% of patients eligible* to receive adjuvant chemotherapy (ACT) did so, exceeding the goal.

*Note: In both years, there were patients who for age or comorbid conditions were not eligible to receive adjuvant chemotherapy, and these criteria for ineligibility were well documented.