Cancer Registry Data Collection Flashcards

Which of the following is the correct behavior when a cancer registry abstract is missing the date of diagnosis because no documentation provides a specific date?

Answer: Use the date of first treatment as a proxy per coding guidelines

When an exact diagnosis date is unavailable, registrars follow STORE/FORDS rules allowing the date of first treatment to be used as a proxy.

A patient is diagnosed with ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) of the breast. How is the behavior code recorded in ICD-O-3?

Answer: /2 — in situ

In situ neoplasms, including DCIS, are coded /2 in ICD-O-3 because cells are malignant but have not invaded through the basement membrane.

Under CoC standards, what is the maximum allowable time between diagnosis and completion of the cancer registry abstract?

Answer: 6 months

CoC requires that abstracts be completed within 6 months of the patient's first contact with the facility for that diagnosis.

Which registry item captures the extent of disease based on physical exam, imaging, and surgery BEFORE any treatment?

Answer: Clinical stage

Clinical stage is assigned using all information available prior to the initiation of treatment.

A patient with lung cancer has a PET scan showing uptake in mediastinal lymph nodes but no biopsy of those nodes. How should the registrar handle lymph node involvement for staging?

Answer: Assign clinical N stage based on imaging findings per AJCC rules

Clinical staging incorporates imaging results such as PET scans to assign N category even without biopsy confirmation.

What is the purpose of the 'follow-up' component in hospital cancer registry operations?

Answer: To track patient vital status and disease status over time for survival analysis

Follow-up is the ongoing process of contacting patients, physicians, or other sources to determine current vital and disease status for outcomes research.

Which field in the cancer abstract specifically documents whether the patient was part of a cancer-directed clinical trial?

Answer: Protocol participation / research flag

The protocol participation or research field records whether the patient was enrolled in a cancer-related clinical trial during first-course treatment.