International Cancer Benchmarking Partnership

April 2012 marks the beginning of the Partnership’s second five-year mandate and the next phase of implementing Canada’s national cancer strategy. The priorities and initiatives for the next five years are outlined in our 2012-2017 strategic plan, Sustaining Action Toward a Shared Vision. Our website will soon be updated to reflect the activities supporting the strategic plan. The information below reflects the priorities and accomplishments of our work between 2007 and 2012. 

Improving cancer survival outcomes by optimizing policies and services

The International Cancer Benchmarking Partnership (ICBP) is a collaboration of clinicians, academics and policy-makers from six countries across three continents seeking to understand how and why cancer survival varies among countries and jurisdictions. The participating countries are Australia (New South Wales and Victoria), Sweden, Denmark, Norway, the United Kingdom (England, Northern Ireland and Wales) and Canada (Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba and Ontario).

The Partnership is one of 12 international collaborators from these six countries, and actively participates on the ICBP Programme Board for the overall initiative. Various staff members are also participating in ICBP modules. Insight generated by the ICBP is expected to help all partners improve cancer survival outcomes by optimizing cancer policies and services.

Progress to date

• The first of five ICBP modules studied cancer survival among all ICBP partners. Survival rates for four cancers — lung, breast, colorectal and ovarian — were analyzed and presented as a scientific paper in The Lancet in December 2010. In a related press release, the Partnership highlighted that Canada’s cancer survival rates ranked among the highest among participating countries.
• The second module uses a public survey to explore differences in population awareness and beliefs about cancer, as well as the degree to which this variation contributes to differences in survival among participating jurisdictions. The module’s Canadian component is funded by the Canadian Partnership Against Cancer. Interviews have been completed in all provinces, and the territories will be surveyed next. Results are expected in 2011/12.