American Society of Clinical Oncology/National Comprehensive Cancer Network Quality Measures

Purpose The National Cancer Policy Board recommended the creation of quality measures and a national reporting system in 1999. Representatives from the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) and the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) collaborated to create metrics suitable for national performance measurement. Methods Content and methodology experts nominated by ASCO and NCCN met to select and refine metrics for breast, colon, and rectal cancer based on National Initiative for Cancer Care Quality and NCCN measures and NCCN and ASCO guidelines. Measures were selected based on their impact on disease free and overall survival, the degree to which opportunities for improvement exist, and the feasibility of data collection. Results Three breast cancer measures and four colorectal cancer measures were chosen. Measures for breast cancer included adjuvant hormone therapy for hormone receptor–positive tumors, chemotherapy for hormone receptor–negative cancer, and radiation after lumpectomy. Colore...