SEER began collecting data on cancer cases on January 1, 1973, in the states of Connecticut, Iowa, New Mexico, Utah, and Hawaii and the metropolitan areas of Detroit and San Francisco-Oakland. Since then, the SEER Program has been expanded to cover numerous additional areas (see map below). Visit the SEER 50th Anniversary page to learn more about the changes in population coverage.

For nine registries (Kentucky, Greater California, Utah, Louisiana, Georgia, New York, Massachusetts, Wisconsin, and Idaho), NCI funds are combined with funding from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) through the National Program of Cancer Registries and with funding from the states.

Visit the list of registries to view a description of each SEER registry, including the number of persons by race. The number of persons by race for all registries combined are presented in a separate table.

SEER History

Launched in 1973, SEER collects and transforms enormous amounts of registry data into information we can understand. For 50 years the program has continuously expanded to cover nearly 50% of the U.S. population.

U.S. Map with SEER Registries

SEER Investigators Web site (login required) - provides communication and contact materials for investigators from the SEER registries.