1/17/2008

Most of you by now are familiar with the National Cancer Data Base (NCDB) and the indicators which are now available to Commission on Cancer approved facilities, based on their own data. The most recent additions, the eQuIP indicators, include three performance measures for breast cancer, and 2 for colorectal. For breast cancer, the indicators measure how often radiation therapy, hormonal therapy, and chemotherapy, are administered or recommended, for appropriate subgroups of patients. One of the colorectal indicators notes the frequency of identifying 12 or more lymph nodes in a colon cancer specimen. The other looks at whether radiation therapy has been given in patients with surgically resected Stage IIb or III rectal cancer. Data is available for years 2003 through 2005, and may be edited on line with immediate updating of the data. These indicators will eventually be transformed into CP3R reports which will allow for direct comparison of one's own facility results with other facilities, either across the state, or other geographic regions.

As the NCDB evolves into a more interactive database, there is interest in making the data input closer to real time. The concept is to be able to identify patients who have not received appropriate therapy, in time to impact care for the individual before the opportunity is lost. Patients diagnosed with cancer will have a limited number of data points submitted to NCDB as soon after diagnosis as possible, and before treatment has been completed. This will initiate a timeline, which will trigger reminders to the facility that certain treatments should have been completed within a certain time frame. A pilot program is being planned that would be open to CoC approved facilities in Georgia to test this concept. Details should be forthcoming in the next few months.

There has been progress in GA-CORE, the statewide network of physicans and facilities for making clinical trials available to all Georgians. The first trial is now open, a neoadjuvant chemotherapy trial for patients with HER2 negative early breast cancer. GA CORE has also signed an agreement with the Gynecologic Oncology Group (GOG), to make all GOG clinical trials available through GA CORE. In addition, a lung cancer working group, spearheaded by Rudy Bordoni and Fadlo Khuri, is hoping to foster cooperation among all interested parties in the state in order to increase availability of clinical trials for patients with lung cancer.

There were many participants who volunteered their time to update the Georgia state cancer plan last year. The final document is to be unveiled this year, in conjunction with a Georgia Cancer Coalition Summit Conference to be held on January 14-15, 2008

All academic institutions should be aware of a new resident paper competition being sponsored by the Commission on Cancer. The competition is open to general surgery residents, surgical specialty residents, subspecialty residents, and oncology fellows in the US. The papers should describe original research in cancer care in either: (1) basic laboratory research; (2) clinical investigation; or (3) quality of care/health services research. A structured abstract should be submitted to the CoC by March 15, 2008. Regional winners will move to a national competition. First-, second-, and third-place winners of the national competition will be notified by August 15. The first-place winner will present their abstract during the CoC Annual meeting on Sunday, October 12, 2008, in San Francisco, and will be awarded $1000. Second -place winner will be awarded $500. The competition has been funded by the CoC and a memorial gift in honor of the late Matthew Campione, MD, FACS. For more information go to http://www.facs.org/cancer/cannews.html or contact Carolyn Jones at this email.