Annual Report 2024
Center for Cancer Registries
Tomohiro Matsuda, Manami Inoue, Naoyuki Sato, Jun Umezawa, Mariko Niino, Naoki Sakakibara, Taisuke Ishii, Mami Ueda, Katsura Ito, Ayami Ono, Naoko Koike, Mai Kuwabara, Yoshiko Emori, Saya Maruyama, Seiya Kondo, Mika Maeda, Shiho Matsuura, Yuka Takahashi, Saori Uenishi, Emiko Enjoji, Mari Watanabe, Nanayo Shindo, Ayumi Iwanishi, Kahoko Akimoto
Introduction
The Center for Cancer Registries maintains accurate and useful cancer statistics, providing a foundation for evidence-based cancer control measures, research, and improvements in the quality of healthcare.
The Team and What We Do
The Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare commissioned the collection, review, collation and aggregation of data from prefectures under the Cancer Registration Promotion Act. We connect all 47 prefectures and the National Cancer Center online via a cloud environment. This enables the collation and aggregation of data entered by prefectural cancer registration offices, alongside the integration of mortality information provided by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, to produce population-based cancer statistics. Concurrently, we collect detailed hospital-level data from base hospitals and other institutions implementing hospital-based cancer registry, calculating indicators that contribute to the evaluation of healthcare quality.
Research Activities
The National Cancer Registry has finalised and published data for cases diagnosed in 2021. As part of the nationwide compilation of hospital-based cancer registries at Designated Cancer Care Hospitals, it has compiled and published data for cases diagnosed in 2023. The 10-year survival rate data for hospital-based cancer registries covering 2012 cases were reported. Support for follow-up surveys regarding resident record inquiries from each designated cancer care hospital to municipalities continued for survival rate compilation. A service window was operated to provide anonymised National Cancer Registry data and anonymised hospital-based cancer registry national compilation data for research purposes. To promote the utilisation of such information, committee sizes were reduced, procedures were simplified, and relevant manuals were revised.
The prefectural database system was operated and maintained to enable the integrated use of data up to and including cases diagnosed in 2015 alongside data from cases diagnosed in 2016 onwards. The National Cancer Registry Common Reporting System (GTOL/GTS) and the National Cancer Registry Information Request System were maintained. Updates were performed for the standard hospital-based cancer registry software, Hos-CanR Next and Hos-CanR Lite. Development also progressed on the ‘Recommendation System’ for extracting treatment information from DPC data.
The Cancer Registration Centre as a whole maintained its ISMS certification (ISO/IEC 27001 compliant). Furthermore, based on the Security Control Measure Manual for Personal Information Protection in the National Cancer Registry, external audits of the prefectural cancer registration offices were conducted by outsourcing to external organisations.
Education
Practical considerations for cancer registration and awareness-raising regarding recent rule changes were communicated, and cancer education was provided. Training sessions (basic and intermediate levels) for tumor registrars and administrative staff from prefectures were held online and via e-learning. For tumor registrars working in hospitals, basic-level certified tumor registrar training and intermediate-level certified tumor registrar training were conducted via e-learning. Additionally, examinations were held for basic- and intermediate-level certified tumor registrars working in hospitals, alongside certification renewal examinations. Training in data analysis was also provided concurrently.
Future Prospects
We must make up for the one-year delay in cancer registration operations, expedite the process to finalise data compilation, and ensure that cancer registration data become truly useful. Beyond the stable operation of cancer registration under the Cancer Registration Promotion Act, we will steadily advance preparations in anticipation of legislative amendments and the introduction of new cancer classification codes.