There is no point to have annually updated cancer registries, former Health Ministry Disease Control Department deputy director Dr Zainal Ariffin Omar says.

He said this in reference to Klang MP Charles Santiago’s call for updated public registries for all major diseases.

“There is no point to come up (with these registries) every year, because chronic diseases are long-term and we normally create the cancer registry every three to five years, like in other countries,” Zainal Ariffin said in an interview with Malaysiakini.

Attempts to reach the director of the Disease Control Department have been unsuccessful.

The last cancer registry for Malaysia was published in 2007.

Contrasts with international practice

This contrasts with international practice, such as in the United States and Europe, where comprehensive cancer registries are updated annually.

However, a Ministry of Health report in 2011 notes that the practice is less stringent in the Asean region, due to poor budgeting, lack of resources and proper software.

Even so, the report said, cancer registries are important to control cancer-related illnesses.

Registries are needed to study how cancers form and spread, healthcare planning and monitoring and to improve patient care, the report said.

"Cancer registries can provide reliable information on cancer," it said.

"With comprehensive registries, there will be a change in the incidence, survival and mortality rate of a cancer."

Countries that have comprehensive cancer and disease-related registries have shown evidence of improved health outcomes, says a report by Health Affairs, a non-profit international health education organisation.