Trends in cancer survival in the Nordic countries 1990–2016: the NORDCAN survival studies

Differences in cancer survival between the Nordic countries have previously been reported. The aim of this study was to examine whether these differences in outcome remain, based on updated information from five national cancer registers. The data used for the analysis was from the NORDCAN database...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Lundberg, Frida E., Andersson, Therese M.-L., Lambe, Mats, Engholm, Gerda, Mørch, Lina Steinrud, Johannesen, Tom Børge, Virtanen, Anni, Pettersson, David, Ólafsdóttir, Elínborg J., Birgisson, Helgi, Johansson, Anna L. V., Lambert, Paul C.
Format: Dataset
Language:unknown
Published: Taylor & Francis 2020
Subjects:
Medicine
Biotechnology
59999 Environmental Sciences not elsewhere classified
FOS Earth and related environmental sciences
Ecology
FOS Biological sciences
Immunology
FOS Clinical medicine
69999 Biological Sciences not elsewhere classified
Cancer
Science Policy
Norway
Iceland
Online Access:https://dx.doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.13109955
https://tandf.figshare.com/articles/dataset/Trends_in_cancer_survival_in_the_Nordic_countries_1990_2016_the_NORDCAN_survival_studies/13109955
Description
Summary:Differences in cancer survival between the Nordic countries have previously been reported. The aim of this study was to examine whether these differences in outcome remain, based on updated information from five national cancer registers. The data used for the analysis was from the NORDCAN database focusing on nine common cancers diagnosed 1990–2016 in Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden with maximum follow-up through 2017. Relative survival (RS) was estimated at 1 and 5 years using flexible parametric RS models, and percentage point differences between the earliest and latest years available were calculated. A consistent improvement in both 1- and 5-year RS was found for most studied sites across all countries. Previously observed differences between the countries have been attenuated. The improvements were particularly pronounced in Denmark that now has cancer survival similar to the other Nordic countries. The reasons for the observed improvements in cancer survival are likely multifactorial, including earlier diagnosis, improved treatment options, implementation of national cancer plans, uniform national cancer care guidelines and standardized patient pathways. The previous survival disadvantage in Denmark is no longer present for most sites. Continuous monitoring of cancer survival is of importance to assess the impact of changes in policies and the effectiveness of health care systems.

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