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The Office for National Statistics (ONS) is reviewing its cancer incidence and survival outputs to ensure tha t they continue to meet users’ requirements. Comments are requested on the proposed new outputs outlined in this document. ONS will also consult directly with key customers. The responses will be used to help ONS determine the content of future statistical outputs on cancer incidence and survival.
ONS produces a range of statistical outputs on cancer incidence and survival in England.
These publications have developed over a long period of time in response to identified needs, the availability of data and developments in methodology.
It is important to ensure that National Statistics publications continue to meet the requirements of informed decision-making by Government, public services, researchers and the public. The cancer information produced needs to help drive better outcomes across the entire cancer care pathway. This will support the Department of Health’s stated priorities and commitments in improving health outcomes.
Currently, some of the variables collected by ONS are not used for the production of
National Statistics. ONS plans, where possible, to substitute these with variables that will be used, to ensure that National Statistics publications on cancer remain relevant.
Proposed new variables include those on stage at diagnosis and treatment. Nationally comparable data for England on stage at diagnosis or treatment are not currently available. As these data become available, they will be evaluated as to their fitness for the purposes of National Statistics. ONS has therefore been commissioned by the Department of Health to run a public consultation on how National Statistics on cancer incidence and survival should be developed in the future.
The publication of cancer incidence and survival statistics is governed by the Statistics and
Registration Services Act 2007, and by ONS disclosure control policies for birth and death statistics and for health statistics .
National Statistics quality reports for Cancer Registration Statistics and Cancer Survival
Statistical Bulletins were published in late 2012.
The list below identifies additional items that could be included in cancer incidence and survival outputs. These have been identified by ONS as potentially relevant both to the needs of users and to the current policy context, although the production of the proposed outputs would be dependent on funding. Responses to this consultation will inform future planning decisions on the outputs that ONS should prioritise.

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ONS currently produces Cancer Statistics Registrations, England (Series MB1) . This is an annual report on cancer incidence in England, including the numbers of patients diagnosed each year, by type of cancer, age group and sex, and the incidence rates per
100,000 per year, both nationally and by region. The most recent publication covers patients diagnosed in 2010.
The following items are potentially useful additions, in each case for selected cancers:
1. Distribution of stage at diagnosis.
2. Incidence by demographic factors such as deprivation, ethnic group or occupation.
3. Incidence at a sub-national level, for example by local authority or clinical commissioning group.
Some treatment-related analyses may also be valuable additions, again for selected cancers:
4. The proportion of patients who receive different types of treatment.
5. The distribution of treatment type by stage at diagnosis.
6. The distribution of treatment type by demographic factors such as age, sex, deprivation, ethnicity and occupation.
ONS currently produces Cancer Survival in England 1 , an annual report on cancer survival up to five years after diagnosis for adults in England diagnosed with one of 21 cancers by sex, by age and for all ages combined. These cancers comprise over 90 per cent of all newly diagnosed cancers. The most recent data are for patients diagnosed in 2006 –2010 and followed up to 2011.
The following items are potentially valuable additions, in each case for selected cancers:
7. Survival by stage at diagnosis.
8. Survival by type of treatment.
9. Survival by stage at diagnosis and type of treatment.
10. Survival by demographic factors such as deprivation, ethnic group and occupation.
For each of the potential new items listed above we would like you to answer the following questions. Responses to the consultation can be submitted by completing the feedback form or by sending comments by email to: cancer.newport@ons.gov.uk
.
Alternatively, the completed response template can be sent to:
1
A range of other outputs focusing on cancer survival by different geographical breakdowns are also produced. These are currently under review and will change in line with recent changes to geographic boundaries.

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Sarah Whitehead
Life Events and Population Sources Division
Office for National Statistics
Room 1.364
Government Buildings
Cardiff Road
Newport
NP10 8XG
Phone: +44 (0)1633 651620
The closing date for receipt of responses is 20 February 2013.
1. How useful do you feel this item would be? Please indicate your answer using the scale provided in the response template.
2. Please provide reasons for your assessment of how useful the item would be.
3. Do you believe that this item will help inform policy?
4. Please provide reasons for your assessment of whether the item will help inform policy or not.
5. Do you have any concerns about the proposed new item?
6. If so, please indicate what these concerns are.
We would also like to understand how you prioritise these items, and whether you would want any items that are not included here. Therefore, please also answer the following questions:
1. Please rate the proposed new incidence and treatment related items in order of importance, where one equals most important and six equals least important.
2. Please rate the proposed new survival related items in order of importance, where one equals most important and four equals least important.
3. Please indicate if there are any other items that you have a requirement for in addition to those identified in this consultation document.
4. Please indicate why you have a requirement for these items, and what you would use them for.
5. Please provide any additional comments that are relevant to this consultation.
Information provided in response to this consultation, including personal information, may be subject to publication or release to other parties or to disclosure in accordance with the

Review of Cancer Incidence and Survival Statistics: User Consultation | Page 5 access to information regimes (these are primarily the Freedom of Information Act 2000
(FOIA), the Data Protection Act 1998 (DPA) and the Environmental Information
Regulations 2004).
If you would like the information, including personal data, that you submit to be treated as confidential, please be aware that, under the FOIA, there is a statutory Code of Practice with which public authorities must comply and which deals, among other things, with obligations of confidence. In view of this it would be helpful if you could explain to us why you regard the information you have provided as confidential. If we receive a request for disclosure of the information we will take full account of your explanation, but we cannot give an assurance that confidentiality can be maintained in all circumstances. Before disclosing any information that is personal to you, we will inform you of this in advance of any disclosure. An automatic confidentiality disclaimer generated by your IT system will not, of itself, be regarded as binding on the Office for National Statistics.
Please ensure that your response is clearly marked if you wish your response and your name to be kept confidential. Confidential responses will be included in any summary of numbers of comments received and views expressed.
This consultation will run from 19 December 2012 to 20 February 2013.
A summary of the responses to this consultation, with key findings and planned changes to cancer incidence and survival outputs, will be published on the ONS website in spring
2013.
If you would like to make any comments about the consultation process we have followed, please contact:
Alison Davies, Consultations Co-ordinator
Office for National Statistics
Room 1.101
Government Buildings
Cardiff Road
Newport
NP10 8XG
Email: alison.davies@ons.gov.uk
Please do not send responses to the consultation to this address.
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