For reporting and analysis, NCDB organizes much of its data by which factor?

• A. Disease site
• B. Histology
• C. AJCC stage of disease
• D. Patient age

Answer: (A)

The main idea is that NCDB organizes its reporting and analysis around where the cancer started—the disease site. Grouping data by anatomical origin allows consistent, site-specific comparisons across many institutions, because cancers from the same site tend to have similar patterns of treatment and outcomes. This site-based framework makes it possible to benchmark and study trends for each type of cancer in a uniform way.

Within that site-based structure, other details like histology (the microscopic tumor type), AJCC stage (extent of disease), and patient age are still collected and used to refine analyses and compare subgroups. But they serve as variables within each site rather than the overarching organizing principle of the database.

So, while histology, stage, and age are important descriptors, the organizing factor for reporting and analysis in NCDB is the disease site.