The Australian Capital Territory Cancer Registry

What is the Cancer Registry?

The cancer registry is the agency established under the Public Health Act to receive notifications of cancer in the ACT. The Department of Health administers the registry. All information sent to the ACT Cancer Registry is confidential, is held under tight security and is protected by the Public Health Act.

What information is on the Register?

Information is collected about patients with cancer and includes:

• name and address
• date of birth
• country of birth
• whether the person is of Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander descent
• clinical details about the cancer
• the notifying institution and doctor.

Personal details, such as name and address, are needed to ensure that accurate information is recorded for each person and that each new cancer is only counted once in the statistics. However, these details are kept strictly confidential. Generally, non-melanoma skin cancers are not recorded on the the register.

Who has access to information on the Register?

The Department gives the information on a regular basis to the National Cancer Statistics Clearing House at the AIHW. In relation to research, the information is made available only to approved medical researchers engaged in studies which are considered, by the ACT Health Ethics Committee, to be of importance to the community. The Registry also uses the data in its publications. To obtain copies of its publications please contact the Cancer Registry.

Additional information

A pamphlet outlining the information listed on this page, and additional information on what the information on the Register is used for, and how the information gets on to the register, can be obtained by contacting the Cancer Registry