Childhood Cancer Monitoring Tool Developed

Science & Technology Science

Posted by NewAdmin on 2025-01-29 11:28:42 |

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Childhood Cancer Monitoring Tool Developed

The Childhood Cancer Survivorship, Treatment, Access, and Research (STAR) Act is advancing the collection and reporting of childhood cancer data. Through the National Program of Cancer Registries (NPCR), the CDC is developing a faster reporting system that allows for real-time cancer case reporting. This will help enhance understanding of cancer types, improve treatment options, and make connections between patients and necessary resources more efficient.

A key feature of this effort is the development of a cloud-based infrastructure called the National Oncology Rapid Ascertainment Hub (NOAH), which enables laboratories to quickly send cancer data to central registries. This modernized system is expected to decrease the time it takes to report cases, which typically takes about two years, and will make it easier to enroll patients in clinical trials.

The STAR project is being implemented in phases, with the first phase focusing on understanding current registry processes and establishing best practices for data exchange. Following pilot testing with several cancer registries, the second phase aims to improve the system further and integrate NOAH with NPCR's cloud-based platform. This will expand data collection efforts to include all cancer types across the United States and its territories.

As the system is rolled out nationwide, it is expected to make substantial improvements in childhood cancer care by enabling more timely and accurate data reporting. This, in turn, will aid researchers in studying cancer survival rates and treatment effectiveness while also providing better access to resources for patients and their families.