Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 26 July 2022
1804. Deputy Ivana Bacik asked the Minister for Health if he will outline the data which is recorded by his Department in respect of cancer diagnosis and treatment; the way that data informs policy; the number of persons in Ireland who were diagnosed with cancer in 2021; the number who were treated for cancer by HSE facilities in 2021; and the number of persons who were being treated for cancer in a HSE facility who died from the illness in 2021. [40543/22]
View answerThe National Cancer Registry Ireland (NCRI) is charged with collecting and classifying information on all cancer cases that occur in Ireland. The NCRI produces annual reports covering cancer incidence, mortality and survival.
NCRI data is used widely in the development of cancer services, service planning and in monitoring progress being made under the National Cancer Strategy. The NCRI Strategic Plan 2020-2022 sets out the high-level goals of the NCRI over three years. The strategic priorities for the NCRI, as laid out in the plan, cover Data Capture; Information Communication; and Organisational Development. The Strategic Plan focuses on increasing and optimising the uses of available data to drive improvements in cancer care for patients.
The most recent year for which the NCRI has published incident cancer case counts is for 2020. This data was published in its 2021 annual report, which is available at www.ncri.ie/sites/ncri/files/pubs/NCRI_Annual%20Report_2021.pdf. At the time of publication in December 2021, 21,906 cases of invasive cancer (excluding Non-Melanoma Skin Cancer) were registered for the year 2020. However, the full accurate data for 2020 will not be available until the NCRI has collected and verified all data. The NCRI has advised that it aims to publish updated incidence figures for 2020 and preliminary figures for 2021 before the end of 2022.
Neither the HSE's National Cancer Control Programme nor the NCRI collect information on the number of cancer patients who finish active treatment. This is as many cancer survivors require life-long, evidenced-based health care, whether preventive, general medical, psychosocial or care specific to their cancer diagnosis, meaning that their care can continue long after their primary treatment.
The NCRI compiles mortality figures from the Central Statistics Office (CSO) and has advised that the most recent year for which figures are available is 2019. The NCRI normally publishes a moving 3-year annual average for stability and consistency. It estimates the annual average mortality figure for 2017-2019 at 9,644.
