Colorectal Cancer

Colorectal cancer data analysis

In 2007, HealthEast diagnosed and treated 120 cases of colon cancer and 24 cases of rectal cancer, for a total of 144 colorectal cancers. Commission on Cancer (CoC)-approved programs submit data to the National Cancer Data Base (NCDB) on a yearly basis. In 2006, 78,137 cases of colon cancer and 22,183 cases of rectal cancer were reported to the NCDB, for a total of 100,320 colorectal cancers. Minnesota hospitals submitting data to the NCDB reported 1,402 cases of colon cancer and 488 cases of rectal cancer, for a total of 1,890 colorectal cancers. HealthEast submits data to the NCDB annually.

The following tables compare HealthEast with Minnesota and the National Cancer Data Base in the areas of age at diagnosis, stage at diagnosis, treatment and five-year observed survival.

Colorectal cancer: age at diagnosis

The majority of colorectal cancers were diagnosed in patients who were 70 to 79 years of age. At HealthEast, 52% of colorectal cancer patients were 70 to 89 years of age.

Cancer Facts & Figures 2008: The risk of colorectal cancer increases with age; more than 90% of cases are diagnosed in individuals aged 50 and older.

*Minnesota - 19 hospitals **NCDB - 1,316 hospitals
Source: NCDB, Commission on Cancer, ACoS, Benchmark Reports,v9.0

Colorectal cancer: stage at diagnosis

In 2007, the majority of HealthEast colon cancer patients presented with Stage 2 disease, as did Minnesota and NCDB patients at 27% and 24% respectively. Twenty-nine percent of HealthEast rectal cancer patients presented with Stage 4 disease. Minnesota and NCDB patients presented most often with Stage 1 disease at 30% and 24% respectively.

American Cancer Society: The stage describes the extent of the cancer in the body. It is based on how far the cancer has grown into the wall of the intestine, whether or not it has reached nearby structures, and whether or not it has spread to the lymph nodes or distant organs. The stage of cancer is one of the most important factors in determining prognosis and treatment options.

*Minnesota - 19 hospitals **NCDB - 1316 hospitals
Source: NCDB, Commission on Cancer, ACoS, Benchmark Reports,v9.0

Colon cancer treatment

Rectal cancer treatment

At HealthEast, 59% of colon cancer patients were treated with surgery alone, compared to 62% for both Minnesota and NCDB patients. Another 24% of HealthEast patients had both surgery and chemotherapy, compared with Minnesota and NCDB at 25% and 24% respectively.

Rectal cancer treatment at HealthEast shows 33% of patients being treated with surgery alone, compared with Minnesota at 36% and NCDB at 35%. Thirty-three percent of HealthEast patients received a combination of surgery, radiation and chemotherapy. Thirty-nine percent of Minnesota patients and 34% of NCDB patients received the same multimodality therapy.

American Cancer Society: Surgery is the most common treatment for colorectal cancer. For cancers that have not spread, surgical treatment may be curative. Chemotherapy alone, or in combination with radiation (for rectal cancer), is given before or after surgery to most patients whose cancer has deeply penetrated the bowel wall or spread to lymph nodes.

*Minnesota - 19 hospitals **NCDB - 1,316 hospitals
Source: NCDB, Commission on Cancer, ACoS, Benchmark Reports,v9.0

Five-year observed survival by stage
diagnosis years 1998 - 2001

An overall five-year observed survival rate for all stages of colon cancer was 56% at HealthEast. Minnesota and NCDB survival rates were at 51% and 52% respectively. An overall survival rate for all stages of rectal cancer was 59 percent at HealthEast. Minnesota and NCDB survival rates were 61% and 56% respectively.

Observed survival measures the proportion of persons surviving cancer for a certain period of time, regardless of the cause of death.

Source: 2008 National Cancer Data Base/Commission on Cancer
# Insufficient data for calculation
*Minnesota - 16 hospitals
**National Cancer Data Base - 1,314 hospitals

Next: Data on HealthEast Cancer Cases and Incidence by Site and Gender

Annual Report