Population-based cancer registration started at the provincial/territorial level in Canada in what year?

• A. 1930
• B. 1932
• C. 1935
• D. 1937

Answer: (B)

Population-based cancer registration is about counting every new cancer case within a defined population so incidence rates can be measured and trends tracked over time. In Canada, the move from hospital- or pathology-based counts to organized, province-wide data collection began in the early 1930s, with the first province establishing a population-based registry in 1932. That year marks the start of systematic, comprehensive registration at the provincial level, enabling more accurate understanding of cancer burden and informing public health planning. Over the following decades, more provinces followed suit, building toward broader surveillance that would eventually connect into wider national data efforts.