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ABSTRACT: Cancer incidence and mortality rates have decreased over the last few decades, yet not all groups have benefited equally from these successes. This has resulted in increased disparities in cancer burden among various population groups.
This study examined trends in absolute and relative disparities in overall cancer incidence and mortality rates between African American and white residents of Wisconsin during the period 1995-2006.
Cancer incidence data were obtained from the Wisconsin Cancer Reporting System. Mortality data were accessed from the National Center for Health Statistics' public use mortality file. Trends in incidence and mortality rates during 1995-2006 for African Americans and whites were calculated and changes in relative disparity were measured using rate ratios.
With few exceptions, African American incidence and mortality rates were higher than white rates in every year of the period 1995-2006. Although cancer mortality and incidence declined for both groups over the period, relative racial disparities in rates persisted over the period and account for about a third of African American cancer deaths.
Elimination of cancer health disparities will require further research into the many contributing factors, as well as into effective interventions to address them. In Wisconsin, policymakers, health administrators, and health care professsionals need to balance resources carefully and set appropriate priorities to target racial inequities in cancer burden.
WMJ: official publication of the State Medical Society of Wisconsin 10/2010; 109(5):267-73.
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ABSTRACT: The Wisconsin Cancer Reporting System (WCRS) collects data on cancer diagnoses in the state of Wisconsin. California and Minnesota cancer registries have reported that Hmong have higher rates of certain cancers than the general population. WCRS collaborated with the Wisconsin Comprehensive Cancer Control Program (WCCCP) and Wisconsin United Coalition of Mutual Assistance Associations (WUCMAA) to investigate the reporting of cancer cases in the Hmong population by medical facilities.
WCRS, WCCCP, and WUCMAA conducted a mail survey of facilities in 12 Wisconsin counties where Hmong populations reside.
The survey found that <30% of facilities collected Hmong as a demographic category or identified cancer patients as Hmong; most facilities reported Hmong patients only as Asian. A training webcast was developed for facilities to reinforce WCRS reporting requirements and to elucidate the Hmong culture. A pamphlet for Hmong patients was developed to explain the importance of self identification for more racially representative cancer data in Wisconsin.
WMJ: official publication of the State Medical Society of Wisconsin 08/2010; 109(4):214-8.
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ABSTRACT: The purpose of this study was to improve the measurement of cancer incidence among American Indians in Wisconsin and compare incidence rates with state and national incidence rates.
The Wisconsin Cancer Reporting System (WCRS) entered into a data linkage project with CDC and the Indian Health Service (IHS) to improve classification of American Indian cancer cases in Wisconsin. WCRS data were linked to IHS patient registration files to identify American Indian cases that were misclassified as a non-Indian race for the years 1998-2002. American Indian age-adjusted rates and rate ratios for major cancer sites were compared before and after the linkage, and with statewide and national rates.
The age-adjusted incidence rate for all cancer among American Indians increased from the pre-linkage rate of 386.3 per 100,000 to the post-linkage rate of 471.7 per 100,000, a statistically significant increase. The post-linkage rate was over twice the comparable Surveillance Epidemiology and End Results (SEER) national rate among American Indians at 233.6 per 100,000. Post-linkage American Indian incidence rates for male colorectal and female lung cancers were higher than those for the state average.
In contrast to earlier data, the linkage results show that American Indians had similar cancer incidence compared to the general population in Wisconsin, and over twice as high as national SEER American Indian rates. Post-linkage rates resulted in more accurate site-specific and geographically focused cancer incidence rates to help target the national and state priorities of addressing disparities among American Indians.
WMJ: official publication of the State Medical Society of Wisconsin 08/2007; 106(4):196-204.
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Mary Foote
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ABSTRACT: These findings focus on African American-white disparities in cancer incidence and mortality between 1996 and 2000 in Wisconsin and the United States. Cancer incidence data were obtained from the Wisconsin Cancer Reporting System (WCRS), the National Cancer Institute's (NCI) Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results (SEER) Program, and mortality data from the National Center for Health Statistics. Results of this study highlight site-specific differences in cancer incidence and mortality rates age adjusted to the 2000 US standard population. Incidence and mortality rate ratios (RR) were calculated comparing African American and white populations. Supplemental variables of cancer-related risk behaviors from the Wisconsin Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) and stage of disease at diagnosis information from WCRS were also examined for differences between African American and white populations. Results showed Wisconsin had an overall greater disparity than the United States for all cancers combined and for cancers of the lung, cervix, and gastrointestinal sites. During the 5-year period, Wisconsin's overall cancer mortality rate was 196 per 100,000, but among African Americans in Wisconsin, the overall mortality rate was 272 per 100,000.
WMJ: official publication of the State Medical Society of Wisconsin 02/2003; 102(5):27-35.
