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FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions)
About the SEER Web Site
- What is the purpose of this
Web site?
- What type of information is available on this site?
- Why is
there no data provided for the current year?
General Questions
- I am new to
the SEER site. Where do I begin?
- Where can I find help with the
statistical terminology?
- What if I cannot find
statistics for a specific cancer type?
- Why must I sign a Limited-Use agreement
to access the SEER data?
- How can I contact someone
to ask questions?
Cancer Statistics: Where can I find …
- ... statistics for a specific
cancer type?
- ... statistics by stage at
diagnosis?
- ... pediatric/childhood cancers?
- ... statistics for more racial
and ethnic combinations?
- ... geographic or regional
data?
- ... quick summaries or fact
sheets?
- ... more detailed data and
statistics?
- ... downloadable data,
tables, charts and graphs?
- ... number of people in the
US with cancer?
- ... life expectancy information?
- ... software and access
to databases to calculate my own statistics?
- What if I can’t
find what I’m looking for on the SEER
Web site?
1. What is the purpose of this Web site?
The purpose of this site is to:
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2. What type of information is available on this site?
The information available on this site falls into the
following categories:
Cancer Statistics
Cancer incidence and survival statistics are available from 1973, the first
year SEER began collecting data, to 2005, the most recent year for which
data are reported. SEER collects data from 18 population-based registries
throughout the US, so incidence and survival statistics are available for
just those covered areas, which comprise more than 25 percent of the
US population. Data by expanded race categories
(White, Black, American Indian/Alaska Native, and Asian/Pacific
Islander, and the ethnic groups Hispanic and Non-Hispanic) are available
from 1992 onward.
Cancer mortality data are available for the entire US from 1950 to 2005,
provided to SEER by the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS).
Analytic Tools and Databases
Once annually, SEER releases its complete incidence
and survival limited-use data files, which include data on more
than six million in situ and invasive cancer cases from the
SEER coverage areas. Mortality data provided by the National
Center for Health Statistics, and population
data obtained
from the Census Bureau, are also available.
SEER also develops and distributes software that aids in the analysis
of the limited-use database (SEER*Stat) and can be used to analyze
data from other cancer registries (SEER*Prep and SEER*Stat).
Information for Cancer Registrars
This site is also a primary resource for cancer registrars,
providing cancer coding and staging manuals, tools to aid in
data collection and quality control, training
materials, and
links to cancer registry resources beyond SEER.
Publications
The publications available on this site include annual reports
of the most recent cancer statistics used to track trends over
time, topical statistical monographs, and coding and staging
manuals for cancer registrars. Most publications are provided
online in PDF format. Some are also available to order
in hardcopy or on CD-ROM.
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3. Why is there no data provided for the current year?
Timely and
accurate release of new data is subject to a reporting
delay, the time lapse before a diagnosed cancer case is reported
to the NCI. The SEER
Program is considered the standard for
data quality, and eliminating errors
and ensuring that all collected data meets SEER guidelines
takes time. Currently, the NCI allows a standard delay of
22 months between the end of the diagnosis year and the time
the cancers are first reported to the NCI in November. The
data are released to the public in the spring of the following
year. For example, cases diagnosed in 2005 were first reported
to the NCI in November 2007 and released to the public in April 2008.
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4. I am new to the SEER site. Where do I begin?
Visitors to this site
will find wide range of resources. These
include statistical summaries and reports which are of
interest to the general public, cancer patients and their
loved ones. It also contains many resources targeted toward
the cancer research and registrar communities. This site
is organized into five main content areas:
Finding Cancer Statistics – This
section will help you find statistics published by SEER,
as well as resources available on other sites. SEER annually
releases millions of cancer statistics which are available
on this site in a number of different formats, from
quick fact sheets to detailed charts, graphs, and tables.
Cancer Registrars – This is a one-stop
resource for cancer registrars looking for coding
and staging information, data collection tools, training
resources, and publications.
Statistical Resources – This section
is targeted towards the research community and
statisticians, and provides Web-based tools to
obtain cancer statistics, access to databases and
analysis software.
Publications – In
this section, you can access annual reports and topical
monographs on-line, order hard copies or CD-ROMs
of publications, or search the bibliography of articles
authored by SEER registry and program staff.
About SEER – This section contains
detailed information about SEER’s data collection
and quality control activities, attributes of the data,
registries that participate in the program, and research
studies.
The site map also provides direct links to the main content
sections.
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5. Where can I find help with the statistical terminology?
The terms used in cancer statistics can be daunting. Refer
to SEER’s
Glossary of Statistical Terms and NCI’s
Dictionary of Cancer Terms for definitions of commonly-used
terms.
For help understanding the types of cancer statistics and
how they are calculated, attributes of the data including
year of diagnosis, race and ethnicity, and geographic
regions covered, see the following resources:
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6. What if I cannot find statistics for a specific
cancer type?
Cancer statistics on this Web site are generally presented
for each of the major cancer sites. For most of the
online tools and reports, you can select from a list of
the major sites to access the statistics. If you are looking
for a cancer site that is not listed, or a specific stage
of the disease, first try accessing statistics for the
primary site under which your cancer of interest falls
(See the SEER Site Recode
Definition for a table of the
major sites SEER uses to report cancer statistics).
Information
on some rare cancers
can be easily accessed
in the Overview
of the Cancer Statistics
Review (PDF).
SEER does collect detailed data on primary tumor
site, tumor morphology, and stage at diagnosis. You can get detailed
statistics through the use of more advanced tools such
as:
- Cancer Query System – a Web-based data retrieval tool
to access statistics that may not be included in the standard
reports and publication.
- SEER*Stat – statistical software
used for the analysis of the limited-use database.
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The SEER data is updated annually and provided to the
public free-of-charge, but a signed data-use agreement is
required from each individual who requests access. While
every effort has been made to ensure the confidentiality
of patients who have been diagnosed with cancer, it is of
utmost importance that those who use the data are aware of
and agree to the provisions associated with its use. These
provisions address privacy concerns, and users must agree
not to attempt to associate cases in the data with real people.
See a sample
agreement form.
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If you have specific questions about the statistics,
databases, analytic tools, and publications on this Web
site, please use the form on the Contact
the SEER Program page to ensure that your
question or feedback is received by the appropriate person.
For general information about cancer, or to speak with
someone by telephone or through live online chat, please
see NCI’s Contacts
for Help.
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9. Where can I find statistics for a specific cancer
type?
Most of the statistics published on the SEER Web site are presented
by cancer site. You can select from lists of the most
common cancers to access a fact sheet (Cancer
Stat Fact Sheets),
online charts, graphs and tables (Fast Stats),
and charts and tables in PDF format (Cancer Statistics
Review). See FAQ #6 for
more information on other cancers.
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10. Where can I find statistics by stage of diagnosis?
Each section
of the CSR contains statistics for stage distribution (the
percent of cancers diagnosed within each stage) and survival
by stage at diagnosis for the cancer site represented in
the section.
SEER uses the following five categories to define the stage of
individual cancer cases: in situ, localized, regional, distant,
and unknown. See NCI's fact sheet, Staging:
Questions and Answers, for an explanation of cancer staging.
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11. Where can I find pediatric/childhood cancers?
The most up-to-date statistics available for pediatric and childhood
cancers are available in two section of the 1975-2005 SEER
Cancer Statistics Review:
There are also two monographs available on the topic
of cancer among children and adolescents:
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12. Where can I find statistics for more racial and
ethnic combinations?
See the Surveillance Research Program’s Web page, Where
can I find Cancer Statistics by Race/Ethnicity?, for links
to reports, monographs, and research tools.
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13. Where can I find geographic or regional data?
SEER currently collects and
publishes data from cancer registries covering over 25% of
the US population. Incidence and survival data is only available
for those coverage areas. The mortality statistics provided
on this site cover the entire US and are provided by NCHS.
To find
statistics for specific US states and counties, see the State
Cancer Profiles Web site, a joint project between NCI and
the CDC.
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14. Where can I find quick summaries or fact sheets?
The Cancer Stat Fact
Sheets were designed to provide printable summaries of the
most recent statistics for a number of common cancer types.
The summaries link to definitions of statistical terms, and to
more detailed statistical tables and charts for the cancer site.
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15. Where can I find more detailed data and statistics?
SEER publishes millions of cancer statistics annually. In order
to make them easily accessible, it is necessary to display them
using common cancer sites, standard statistic types for cancer
reporting, and to make assumptions about the most useful date and
age ranges, geographic regions, and races/ethnicities to present. Try
the following resources for quick, online access to detailed statistics:
- Fast Stats – a number
of statistic types are available by cancer site, age,
race, and year of diagnosis. Data is available
in charts and tables, but text-only or delimited
versions of the data are provided as well.
- Cancer Statistics Review – use
the search feature to pick the statistic type, cancer
site, and race/ethnicity to find individual pages in
the report that match your criteria. You can build
your own report in PDF format by merging pages of the
search results.
- Cancer Query Systems (CanQues) – the
most flexible online tool for accessing statistics, but
also the most complex to use. You can
select from a more expansive list of cancer sites, and
have more control over date, age, sex, and racial/ethnic
combinations.
If you are interested in doing your own statistical analysis
with the greatest control over variables, you can access the SEER
Limited-Use database (in binary or ACSII format) and the SEER*Stat software. Because
the database provides direct access to individual cancer records,
you must sign a data access agreement before using it. This
process necessitates a delay of about 24 to 48 hours before
you gain access to the data.
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The statistics
provided on this site are available in a number of formats:
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17. Where can I find the number of people in the
US with cancer?
The most recent statistics
for the prevalence of cancer in the US can be found in US
Prevalence Counts for 2005 (PDF) from
the SEER Cancer Statistics Review.
The American Cancer Society also publishes Estimated
New Cancer Cases and Deaths for the current
year, which are projected based on SEER incidence and US
mortality rates from previous years.
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18. Where can I find life
expectancy information?
SEER does not publish life tables for life expectancy statistics.
Though not quite equivalent, the following population-based
cancer statistics are available in the SEER Cancer Statistics
Review (CSR):
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19. Where can I find software
and access to databases to calculate my own statistics?
See the Statistical Resources section
of this site for a list of available databases and statistical
software for calculating cancer statistics.
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20. What if I can’t find what I’m looking
for on the SEER Web site?
We often find that people who visit the SEER Web site, referred
by either a search engine or another Web site, are looking
for information beyond the scope of SEER. For example, SEER
does not collect data for the entire US or other countries.
There is also no information available on cancer symptoms,
diagnosis, and treatment. However, refer to the following
list of other resources, which may help you find the information
you seek.
Cancer Information & Research |
|
Clinical Trials |
|
Diagnosis and Treatment |
|
International & National
Data |
|
Current Year Estimates |
|
Health Services & Care
Data |
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