Data collection against cancer

Berlin and Brandenburg start new registry for better patient care

31/10/2014

There was great satisfaction on Wednesday among representatives of health insurance funds, the Berlin health senator Mario Czaja (CDU) and some doctors, the Czaja newly presented cancer registry in view of the fact that cancer is the second leading cause of death in Germany than „big litter“ designated. It only lacks a state contract to start.

Cancer Registry should serve the quality assurance
According to a press release issued by the Berlin Senate Administration for Health and Social Affairs, the new cancer registry thus complies with the statutory obligation of the federal states to establish such clinical cancer registries, as laid down in the National Cancer Plan.

There, in addition to the previous survey of the number and type of cases per region, data from the diagnosis, treatment steps and successes as well as aftercare to relapses to the treatment related statistically recorded and evaluated.

The findings of the evaluation thus obtained should then be available to the treating physicians. Thus, the interdisciplinary, directly related to individual patients cooperation in treatment will be further promoted. This makes the clinical cancer registry an effective one „Instrument for quality assurance of cancer treatment“, the press release continues.

Since many of the cancer patients treated in Berlin come from Brandenburg, and Brandenburg already has a clinical cancer registry and therefore empirical values, this is „a synergetic solution“ for the region.

Data basis better in the future - patients should benefit from improved treatment
For Czaja is one „essential foundation“ establishing a clinical cancer registry: „With the Clinical Cancer Registry, we are creating an important tool to improve the quality of cancer treatment. By integrating and evaluating standardized information on diagnostics, therapy and course of tumor diseases, treatments and tumor conferences will have a significantly better data basis.“

The establishment of the joint cancer registry was preceded by lengthy negotiations by the Health Senator, partly because it concerns data protection and doctors are reluctant to hand over patients.

Accordingly, patients have a right to object. In addition, the names of the patients would only be made accessible to the attending physicians. In addition, all physicians should have access to the then anonymized medical data to improve their treatments.

To achieve effective changes in the treatment strategies, however, according to Czaja need it „a high reporting rate.“ Therefore, he appeals „Already to actively participate in all doctors who treat cancer, so that the clinical cancer registry can be a success“, said Czaja in the press release. According to PNN doctors in Berlin would report 84 percent of cancer cases, in Brandenburg it was even almost 99 percent.

Praise, but also criticism
But there are also critics who, even if they expressly praise the establishment of the joint cancer registry, point to the situation in Berlin's healthcare system. In addition, the green health expert Heiko Thomas criticizes that it is not clear yet, „if all the actors willingly give their data.“ Meanwhile, the number of tumor diseases in Germany is increasing analogously to the average age of the population. (Jp)