Manitoba is pushing the envelope when it comes to recording cancer patient information.
We have unbiased picture of the state of cancer in this province thanks to a registry that was started almost 80 years ago.
Every cancer diagnosis made in this province is documented in filing cabinets at one of the most comprehensive and oldest cancer registries in the world.
"We collect information not just on type of cancer -- but on the type of treatment received," says Gail Noonan of the Manitoba Cancer Registry. There are notations made on whether people had surgery, radiation or chemo.
The information dates back to the 1930s, and was added to the Epidemiology and Cancer Registry in 1998.
There is a benefit to patients -- they can phone in and retrieve information on their files for treatments given last year, or even 10 years ago.
But the confidential information is also valuable to doctors, medical researchers and health policy analysts, who are planning for the eventuality that 40 per cent of Canadians will be diagnosed with cancer at some point in their lives.
While survival rates for many major cancers continue to improve, Canada's aging baby-boomers and the growing population are creating a cancer crisis, according to the Canadian Cancer Society. Most provinces are dealing with double-digit inflation for health-care costs.
"We use this information to get a handle on how much cancer we have and how we can do better," says Dr. Donna Turner.
CancerCare Manitoba protects all of the patient information collected in the registry, and all personal identifiers are removed from any data released.
According to the agency's website, the registry's purpose is to:
- Collect, classify and maintain accurate and comprehensive information on all cancer cases for the province of Manitoba.
- Respect and protect the right to privacy of the patient and ensure the appropriate use of this confidential health information.
- Provide an epidemiological base for provincial cancer control activities in the province of Manitoba.
- Collaborate with national and international agencies on cancer research.
