How Data Helps in Cancer Care

By Cynthia Hayward, ODS-C, Maine Medical Center Cancer Registry Supervisor

What is a Cancer Registry?

A Cancer Registry is an information system designed for the collection, storage, and management of data on persons diagnosed with cancer. Registries play a critical role in cancer surveillance, which tells us where we are in the efforts to reduce cancer burden. Surveillance data may also serve as a foundation for cancer research and is used to plan and evaluate cancer prevention and control interventions.

By Maine state law, all cancer registries must submit data to the state’s cancer registry. Additionally, hospital cancer programs accredited by the Commission on Cancer (CoC) submit their data to the National Cancer Data Base (NCDB) annually.

What is an Oncology Data Specialist?

An Oncology Data Specialist (ODS) is a data collection specialist who paints a holistic picture of a patient’s medical history by looking at the diagnosis, treatment, and disease status for each patient. This process is a vital component for supporting care providers, centralizing cancer treatment details from various systems, and providing summarized statistics for patient trends. Together, the Maine Medical Center Registry team maintains a data system which is designed for the collection, management, and analysis of data on individuals diagnosed with cancer with the goal of improving the overall care we provide.

For more information, check out the following:

~ What is a Cancer Registry?

~ What Is A Cancer Registry Video (ncra-usa.org)