Data Quality Assurance & Cancer Program Standards Flashcards

A cancer registrar is coding a case where the patient received neoadjuvant chemotherapy before surgical resection. Which staging system captures extent of disease AFTER neoadjuvant treatment?

Answer: Post-therapy TNM (ypTNM)

The ypTNM prefix designates pathologic staging performed on a surgical specimen after neoadjuvant (pre-surgical) systemic or radiation therapy.

Which of the following scenarios would trigger a 'suspense' status in a cancer registry case?

Answer: The case is identified but awaiting pathology or treatment information to complete abstraction

A suspense file holds cases that have been identified as reportable but cannot yet be fully abstracted because key information (pathology, treatment) is still pending.

The 'grade' data field in a cancer registry record reflects:

Answer: The degree of cellular differentiation or histologic aggressiveness of the tumor

Grade describes how differentiated (well, moderate, poorly, undifferentiated) the tumor cells are, reflecting biological aggressiveness.

A hospital is completing its CoC survey and must demonstrate that the Cancer Committee reviewed registry data quality reports. What is the minimum meeting frequency required by CoC standards?

Answer: Quarterly

CoC standards require the Cancer Committee to meet at least quarterly to review program activities including registry performance and quality data.

Which NAACCR-defined data item records the facility where the patient was FIRST diagnosed with cancer, even if treatment occurred elsewhere?

Answer: Diagnostic Facility

The Diagnostic Facility data item captures the institution where the initial cancer diagnosis was established, independent of where treatment was provided.

A state central registry performs a completeness assessment by linking registry data to death certificates. Cases appearing on death certificates but not in the registry are called:

Answer: Death Certificate Only (DCO) cases

DCO cases are cancer cases identified only through death certificate review, indicating the registry did not capture the case during the patient's life.

Under STORE rules, when a patient has a single histologic diagnosis of 'adenosquamous carcinoma,' how many primaries should be abstracted?

Answer: One primary using the combined histology code for adenosquamous carcinoma

Adenosquamous carcinoma is a single combined histologic entity with its own ICD-O-3 code, and should be abstracted as one primary using that specific code.