Bulletin of the World Health Organization

Lack of active follow-up of cancer patients in Chennai, India: implications for population-based survival estimates

Rajaraman Swaminathan, Ranganathan Rama, Viswanathan Shanta

Volume 86, Number 7, July 2008, 509-515

Table 2. Incident cancer cases included in the survival analysis, among those registered in 1990–1999 and followed through 2001, PBCR, Chennai, India

Tumoursite/type Number of cases included in survival analysis
Total Passive follow-up only
 Passive and active follow-up
Case 1a
 Case 2b
 Case 3c
 Case 4d
Dead Presumedalive atclosing date Dead Presumedalive atclosing date Dead Alive Lost to follow-up Dead Alive
Lip 86 17 69 46 40 46 10 30 46 10
Tongue 988 371 617 693 295 693 54 241 693 54
Oral cavity 1662 528 1134 1052 610 1052 169 441 1052 169
Tonsil 250 107 143 214 36 214 16 20 214 16
Hypopharynx 1017 421 596 833 184 833 59 125 833 59
Oesophagus 2016 1028 988 1759 257 1759 59 198 1759 59
Stomach 2681 1392 1289 2277 404 2277 120 284 2277 120
Pancreas 328 190 138 291 37 291 23 14 291 23
Larynx 722 290 432 456 266 456 142 124 456 142
Lung 1806 1069 737 1574 232 1574 45 187 1574 45
Breast 3067 875 2192 1489 1578 1489 862 716 1489 862
Cervix 4438 1131 3307 1874 2564 1874 878 1686 1874 878
Ovary 808 321 487 487 321 487 138 183 487 138
Urinary bladder 442 172 270 305 137 305 62 75 305 62
Hodgkin lymphoma 298 92 206 171 127 171 74 53 171 74
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma 868 383 485 602 266 602 130 136 602 130
Lymphoid leukaemia 433 197 236 323 110 323 49 61 323 49
Myeloid leukaemia 465 277 188 365 100 365 35 65 365 35
Leukaemia, type unspecified 85 56 29 69 16 69 5 11 69 5

PBCR, population-based cancer registry.a Case 1: Passive follow-up only, with cancer cases not matched with those in the official mortality database presumed to be alive on the closing date.b Case 2: Passive and active follow-up, with cases lost to follow-up presumed to be alive on the closing date.c Case 3: Passive and active follow-up, with cases lost to follow-up censored on the last date their survival status was known.d Case 4: Passive and active follow-up, with cases lost to follow-up excluded from survival analysis.