April 2002
Highlights for the month:
Facility Oncology Registry Data Standards (FORDS) to be Published
The Commission on Cancer anticipates the publication of FORDS in July 2002. This manual will be available in both electronic and hard copy formats following publication. A complimentary copy of the manual will be available on our Web site in a PDF file. Once the manual has been published, you will be able to purchase a hard copy for $55.00 through the American College of Surgeons Publications Catalog found on our Web site at http://www.facs.org/commerce/2003/catsplash.html.
Highlights
How Will HIPAA Affect Our Relationship With You?
The Health Insurance Portability and Privacy Act (HIPAA) has many of you asking how it will affect hospital cancer registries and your facility's relationship with the Commission on Cancer (CoC). In particular, you have expressed concerns regarding:
- Case follow-up and how registrars will manage this with patients' individual physicians.
- Completion of initial treatment information on patients who have the majority of the treatment outside of the hospital setting.
- Cancer Conference and confidentiality of the patient.
- Submission of cases to NCDB.
Currently, the CoC is planning to pursue the HIPAA-defined role of "business associate." We will continue to serve our approved programs in that capacity as defined within the law as we fall well within the guidelines for such a position. Further, all surveyors will be signing confidentiality and conflict of interest statements which will be filed at the College in order to guarantee that any and all information received by the surveys will be kept within HIPAA-defined rules. To assure that our approved programs and their registries are HIPAA compliant, we plan to use a defined "safe harbor" position and require that the patient care evaluation (PCEs) and other research studies we conduct with your participation and support, be submitted to an Institutional Review Board (IRB) for expedited review since the data we receive have no identifiers, a critical component of the Privacy Act.
You may know that the final regulations came out for a 30-day comment period on March 27, 2002. The College's Washington office plans to submit comments within the 30-day response period.
The College has also hired a law firm to work with us to make certain that our approved programs and the CoC are operating well within the HIPAA-permissible roles/tasks. We are awaiting feedback from our attorney regarding the issues of getting follow-up information on cancer patients, whether or not we may use an electronic signature in the agreement between the hospitals, and the College's role as a "business associate."
Please know that we continue to investigate and track these activities and will provide status reports in the CoC Flash. We will make every effort to maintain an effective relationship with our approved programs in light of the HIPAA regulation.
Highlights
NCDB Surveys Registries about Systemic Agents
In late March the CoC invited 400 approved cancer program registries to participate in a study to evaluate whether the names of systemic agents administered to patients as first course therapy (chemotherapy, hormone therapy, or immunotherapy) are recorded in hospital cancer registry data sets. The deadline for the submission of eligible cases is April 15th. If your registry was asked to participate and has not yet returned the study form, please do so within the next week. Questions about the study can be directed to sslater@facs.org.
Highlights
FIPS Participation on the Rise
More than 47 percent of all CoC-approved cancer programs have agreed to share their data with the American Cancer Society (ACS). We urge you to continue to update FIPS with any changes to your cancer programs resources and services. We also encourage you to visit the ACS Web site at http://www.cancer.org to locate your facility's information on the CoC Hospital Locator.
The ACS reports that last quarter the CoC Hospital Locator received an average of 1,011 hits per month. This figure represents a 45 percent increase from the fourth quarter of 2001. Consider this, not only can you market your Commission on Cancer-approved cancer program by publicizing its availability on the CoC Hospital Locator, you can also direct users to your facility Web site through links on the CoC Hospital Locator.
Also of note, the NCDB is currently processing year 2000 data submissions. We will notify you via email when your Level II-2000 cases as submitted to the NCDB are ready for review on FIPS. As always, we welcome your comments, questions, and suggestions at FIPS@facs.org.
Highlights
American College of Surgeons New 2002-2003 Publications Catalog Now Online
If you're looking for Commission on Cancer publications, check out the new annual edition of the College's Publications and Services Catalog which is now online. There are two ways to view and order titles from the 2002-2003 catalog. You can visit the online catalog at http://www.facs.org/commerce/2003/catsplash.html and browse through titles covering a wide range of surgical topics before placing your credit card order via a secured Web server. Or you can download and print out a paper copy of the catalog--and its corresponding order form--and then fax (312-202-5001) or mail your order to the College's customer service staff (American College of Surgeons, 633 N. Saint Clair St., Chicago, IL 60611-3211).
Highlights
New Designs for Commission on Cancer and AJCC Web Sites
We've changed our looks. Both the CoC (http://www.facs.org/dept/cancer/index.html) and AJCC (http://www.cancerstaging.org) have been redesigned to improve their navigability and usefulness. Take a look.
Highlights
FIN List Available
Don't forget that you can find a list Facility Identification Number (FIN) list on our Web site at http://www.facs.org/dept/cancer/index.html. Click on the FIN List button. This list is updated monthly.
Highlights
AJCC Cancer Staging Manual, Sixth Edition to Publish in May
The American Joint Committee on Cancer (AJCC) is using the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) meeting on May 18-21, 2002 in Orlando, Florida to showcase the AJCC Cancer Staging Manual, Sixth Edition. The Sixth Edition will go into affect with cancer cases diagnosed beginning January 1, 2003.
Organized by disease site into 48 comprehensive chapters, the Sixth Edition features major revisions to the chapters on melanoma and breast cancer, and numerous new drawings illustrate key anatomic sites. Additional user-friendly enhancements include: a summary of changes in the TNM classification from the previous edition at the beginning of each chapter, color-coordinated page tabs for easy access between chapters, a comprehensive index, and a CD-ROM containing TNM staging forms for both individual and institutional use. The price of the manual is $59.95. The handbook version of the Sixth Edition contains the entire text of the original manual, without the staging forms and CD-ROM. The handbook price is $39.95.
See the new Springer-Verlag Web site (http://www.cancerstaging.net) to preview the AJCC Cancer Staging Manual, Sixth Edition. The site provides the complete Table of Contents, a sample chapter, a sample staging form, and information on the features and benefits of the new edition. The Sixth Edition can be purchased online now at http://www.cancerstaging.net.
Highlights
Plans Under Way for AJCC Sixth Edition Videoconference
Preliminary plans are now under way for a videoconference to launch the AJCC Cancer Staging Manual, Sith Edition. The videoconference will be geared to both registry and physician personnel who wish to understand the changes in TNM staging for cancer cases diagnosed beginning January 1, 2003.
The TNM videoconference is scheduled for Thursday, November 21, 2002 and will be held at a time that is convenient for live production in all time zones throughout the United States. Information about the videoconference, including details on participation, will be available in May and will be communicated through CoC Flash and the AJCC Web site at http://www.cancerstaging.org.
Highlights
To Subscribe to CoC Flash
CoC Flash is e-mailed automatically each month to individuals for whom the Commission on Cancer of the American College of Surgeons has an e-mail address. If you wish to continue to receive the newsletter on a monthly basis, you need do nothing. You can discontinue your subscription by writing to coc@facs.org and requesting that your name be deleted from the database. Individuals not currently receiving the newsletter may subscribe to the publication by sending an e-mail containing your name, address, telephone and fax numbers to coc@facs.org, and asking to be added to our electronic distribution database.
To Submit Information
CoC Flash will accept submissions received by the third week of each month. However, the CoC reserves the right to decide whether or not the materials are appropriate for inclusion. Information for CoC Flash should be timely, newsworthy, brief, and of use and interest to the constituents of the Commission, which include cancer registrars, liaison physicians, cancer committee chairs, and other cancer-oriented health care professionals. To submit material, send it to coc@facs.org.
The Commission on Cancer is a consortium of professional organizations dedicated to reducing the morbidity and mortality of cancer through education, standard setting, and the monitoring of quality care. CoC Flash is a monthly news service for constituents of the CoC provided by the Commission and the Cancer Program of the American College of Surgeons.
CoC Flash
Commission on Cancer
