We have invited the auditors back in one year for a second review to ensure we have made all possible administrative improvements.

Read more in this issue of Ontario Cancer News.

We take the recommendations for improvement very seriously and have taken concrete steps to continue to improve our administrative processes and internal controls. Today, we have:

• A new procurement policy that aligns with the new Management Board directives.
• Controls in place that restrict reimbursement of non-eligible expenses.
• An organization-wide independent procurement office which is separate from business units and is now fully operational.
• An organization-wide document management system that will improve our file management capacity and internal controls.
• An ongoing review of, and updates to our human resources policies and procedures.

Cancer Care Ontario has a proven track record of improving access and quality of care for cancer patients throughout the province, with an explicit public plan and regular public reporting. We are known best for our work in decreasing wait times for patients and our screening initiatives such as the Ontario Breast Screening Program. With our partners we established Canada’s first organized colorectal screening program, ColonCancerCheck, founded new and expanded cancer centres and increased access to innovations such as Intensity Modulated Radiation Therapy.

In short, over the last five years, we have delivered value for money and Ontarians can plainly see where we have made progress and where more work is needed in cancer care. To build upon our track record of accountability, we have invited the auditors back in one year’s time for a second review to ensure we have made all possible administrative improvements.

We remain committed to ensuring better cancer services every step of the way, from prevention and screening to treatment and end-of-life care. We will do this by continuing to work with our partners in the community throughout the province.  And, we will continue to communicate in a way that is open and transparent, so we can retain the trust and confidence we share with cancer patients, their families and the Ontario public.

The complete Cancer Care Ontario internal audit report and our response for addressing the recommendations can be found on our website.

A new study published by the Journal of the National Cancer Institute addresses the controversy about whether adding clinical breast examination (CBE) to mammography improves the accuracy of breast screening. Anna M. Chiarelli, PhD, and colleagues in Population Studies and Surveillance at Cancer Care Ontario compared the accuracy of screening among centres that offered CBE with that of centres that offered mammography only. In total, the study was conducted among 290,230 women screened within the Ontario Breast Screening Program.

Overall, the study suggests more answers are needed on the role of CBE before definitive recommendations for or against its use can be made. While we wait for those answers, the data presented by Chiarelli et al suggests that CBE must be done well if it is to be done at all. They acknowledge that if the practice continues, the potential risks and costs will increase as a result of a higher rate of false positives and the anxiety associated with additional evaluations.

This research was supported by a grant from the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation - Ontario Division.

• Read the complete study

Cancer Care Ontario, as part of a partnership with the Occupational Cancer Research Centre, is currently working on predicting future trends in mesothelioma incidence.

Find out more in September’s Ontario Cancer Fact on Cancer Care Ontario's website.

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