Database name:	Canadian Cancer Registry (formerly National Cancer Incidence Reporting System)
Thematic Coverage:	This administrative survey collects information continuously from all provincial and territorial Canadian Cancer Registries on cancer incidence. It provides information on the incidence of cancer by population characteristics and geographic region. It includes mechanisms for updating and clearing death records and is linked to provincial databases to help track patients across Canada who have been diagnosed with tumours.
Maintained by:	Health Statistics Division, Statistics Canada
Availability:	All data release is through custom tabulation on a cost recovery basis. It is linked to the Canadian Mortality Database. There is no suppression for tables on age-standardized rates of death due to cancer and ratio of deaths due to cancer. Release of identifiable micro data from the CCR are normally handled under the discretionary release policy of Statistics Canada. Provincial data based on the CCR is also available online at: http://cythera.ic.gc.ca/dsol/cancer/index_e.html

Start Date:	1969 (National Cancer Incidence Reporting System) 1992 (Canadian Cancer Registry)
Release Date:	3-4 years after reference year
Frequency of collection:	Annual

Data Collection:	Census of all individuals with a primary diagnosis of cancer as defined by ICD codes 140-208. Prior to 1992 the system of collection was based on patient record, after 1992 the system changed to tumor record. Sources of data include pathology, radiology and cytology reports, death certificates, autopsy reports, hospital separation records, out-patient records, and cancer treatment centre files
Sample size:	All individuals with cancer (last reference period sample size was 115,000)

Geographic coverage:	All provinces and territories
Lowest geographic level collected:	Postal codes for patient record Census tract for tumor record
Lowest geographic level of release:	Census Subdivision (cells with <3 observations are suppressed)
Existing rural variable:	No

Rural definitions that can be constructed from this database include (building block):

Rural and Small Town definition	(Census Subdivision)
Metropolitan area and census agglomeration Influenced Zones	(Census Subdivision)
OECD "rural communities" definition	(Census Consolidated Subdivision)
OECD "predominantly rural regions" definition	(Census Division)
Ehrensaft's "Beale codes"	(Census Division)

Data Elements:

• Persons diagnosed with cancer
• New primary site of cancer
• Demographic, medical, geographic and personal identifiers
  

Notes:
The National Cancer Incidence Reporting System (NCIRS) (1969-1992) database is frozen.

Data for all reported carcinomas in situ (ICD-9, codes 230 to 234) are not included with malignant neoplasms for the same site.

Comparability of data are affected by both under- and over-registration.

• Sources of under-registration include: not using important sources such as death certificates, cytology reports, or other health records; not reporting cancer cases treated in a province other than the province or territory of residence; and not reporting late registrations (or cases diagnosed after a registry has already reported that year's cases to Statistics Canada).
  
• Over-registration can result from several factors including: presence of duplicate records for the same case of cancer; and inconsistent definitions for multiple primary cancers. For example, a patient resident in one province but treated in another could be reported by both. Duplicates may also appear within a provincial or territorial registry if records are not examined regularly for records pertaining to the same person.
  

An internal record linkage process removes duplicate records.

Further documentation on the CCR can be found in the Canadian Cancer Registry Procedures Manual.

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