The Northern Ireland Cancer Registry

The Northern Ireland Cancer Registry was evaluated using a 5% sample of all cancers diagnosed histologically in 1983 as the standard for comparison. The overall registration rate was low. Two years following histological diagnosis only 63% of the cancers were registered and 19% of these were notified solely by the Registrar General's office. In a subgroup of patients who were known to have died by the time of the study, only 49% of the cancers were registered while the patient was alive. A further 30% of cases were registered only after death and 21% of cases went unregistered. There was no significant variation in registrations by area, by hospital or by age group. There was a considerable variation in registration rate by disease group. A low level of awareness among hospital doctors about the Northern Ireland Cancer Registry was postulated as a reason for the low levels of registrations received. This was investigated through a postal questionnaire. A response rate of 51% was achieved after two postings. Both the response rate and level of knowledge varied by grade and specialty of the doctor. Only 43% of responders knew of the existence of the cancer registry and only 2% registered patients more often than once a year. Possible methods for improving the system are discussed.