The Cancer Registry of the Seacoast Cancer Center is an essential component of the Wentworth-Douglass Hospital Cancer Program. The Registry is staffed by professionals who have passed a national examination and maintain the continuing education requirements of the National Cancer Registrars Association (NCRA) for designation as Certified Tumor Registrars (CTR).
The Registry is designed to collect, report and analyze data concerning cancer patients diagnosed and treated at our hospital since 1995, in accordance with the requirements of a Comprehensive Hospital Cancer Program approved by the Commission on Cancer of the American College of Surgeons. The ultimate goal of the Registry is to help decrease the morbidity and mortality of cancer patients by providing information for ongoing research and determining current trends in cancer care.
Cancer Registry personnel work closely with physicians, administrators and other healthcare professionals to provide detailed high quality information while maintaining strict guidelines for patient confidentiality. Our clinicians continuously monitor and improve the quality of cancer patient care by evaluating the Registry data. Special studies based on the type of cancer, extent of disease and treatment help our clinicians look at outcomes to understand the causes of cancer and how to treat it most effectively. The registry information is also used locally in a variety of ways, such as:
- Providing information for staff and physician education
- Evaluating the quality of patient care standards
- Developing screening and prevention programs
- Evaluating new clinical trials
- Assisting with planning and future development of hospital and cancer center facilities
- Verifying the need for new services, equipment and personnel.
- Ensuring lifetime follow-up of our cancer patients through annual updates in the registry
Data collected in the cancer registry is a vital part of state and national research focused on learning more about cancer, its treatment and improving cancer survival. Cancer Registry data is reported to the New Hampshire State Cancer Registry (NHSCR) as mandated by state law to identify cancer incidence and possible causes for variations in the rates. The Registry also submits information to the National Cancer Data Base (NCDB), as required by the Commission on Cancer. The NCDB helps us evaluate our diagnosis, treatment, and outcome data as compared to other facilities in an effort to improve the quality of care at Wentworth-Douglass Hospital.
During the last 5 years, the Wentworth-Douglass Hospital Cancer Registry added an average of 887 new patients each year to the database. The five most frequent primary sites of the cancer cases seen at our hospital are Breast 23%; Lung 16%; Prostate 15%; Colorectal 8% and Bladder 4%. Since 1995, the total number of patients in the registry is 8,643.
Another important role of the Registry is to maintain lifetime follow-up to ensure that our patients schedule regular check-ups with their physicians. The registrars currently follow over 4,200 patients each year with a goal of maintaining current information on at least 90% of those diagnosed or treated at our hospital. If you have not been seen at our hospital in the previous year, a Registrar will contact your physician, or it may be necessary to contact you directly to determine your progress. All follow-up information is collected with the protection of patient privacy.
Please contact the Cancer Registry for additional information by calling 603-740-2596.
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