Monitoring and evaluation of colorectal cancer screening quality indicators
Colorectal cancer screening performance across provinces and territories
This digital report presents the results for the monitoring of colorectal cancer screening activities from January 1, 2017 – December 31, 2018 across Canada. The findings presented in this report aim to support shared learnings across the colorectal cancer screening system in Canada and optimize quality and delivery of colorectal cancer screening programs in order to reduce colorectal cancer cases and deaths.
The data presented in this report represents the state of colorectal cancer screening prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted colorectal cancer screening programs beginning in March 2020, and services were disrupted for several months. The impact of this interruption will continue to be felt for many years.
Looking to the future
Modelling conducted by the Partnership using OncoSim demonstrates that long-term consequences of interruptions to screening services can be mitigated by implementing strategies to reduce screening backlogs for colorectal cancer. As colorectal cancer screening programs begin to shift their focus towards pandemic recovery, monitoring the indicators in this report will become even more important to ensure a return to pre-pandemic levels of service and quality. These indicators will also need to be interpreted in different ways, and new indicators may need to be developed to fully tell the story of how the COVID-19 pandemic impacted colorectal cancer screening. It will also be important for colorectal cancer screening programs to ensure equitable access to screening to reduce the disparities that were widened by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Indicators described in this report
- Participation rate
- Screen-eligible population-based program participation rate
- Screening program participation rate (participation rate among those invited to screen)
- Percentage overdue for colorectal cancer screening
- Follow-up colonoscopy rate
- Wait time to follow-up colonoscopy
- Program invasive colorectal cancer rate
- Colorectal cancer stage distribution
- 14-day post-colonoscopy hospitalization rate for perforation or bleeding
- Interval cancers
- Interval cancer rate after negative fecal test result
- Post-colonoscopy colorectal cancer rate after negative colonoscopy performed for positive fecal test
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