Cancer Registry
Cancer registry involves studying how to collect, manage, and analyze data on cancer cases. This includes tracking patient demographics, diagnoses, treatments, and outcomes to identify trends and improve healthcare. Students in this field learn about data management, public health, epidemiology, and cancer research. Cancer registry professionals support cancer prevention, clinical trials, and healthcare policy, playing a key role in improving cancer care and guiding healthcare decisions.
Cancer Registry Accreditation
ODS Eligibility Routes
ODS Eligibility Routes
Students graduating from a CAHIIM-accredited Cancer Registry Management certificate program may qualify for the Oncology Data Specialist (ODS) credential via Route A – Path 2.
Step 1: Education
Students are required to hold, at minimum, an Associate’s Degree in any field or equivalent (60 college-level credits) and to have completed the CAHIIM-accredited certificate program in Cancer Registry Management.
Step 2: Practicum
Upon completion of their coursework, students are eligible to participate in the NCRA-Accredited practicum. Successful completion of the practicum requires passing all core competency assessments.
Step 3: ODS exam
Successful completion of steps 1 and 2 renders students eligible for the ODS credential application. Upon achieving a passing score on the examination, they will be awarded the ODS credential.

Initial Accreditation
Initial Accreditation
Introduction
Prior to the application process, a sponsoring institution must develop a program that meets the professional curriculum content and quality of the program as measured by the Cancer Registry Accreditation Standards and Program administrators must ensure that the program is sustainable per its resource and needs assessment. The program must be developed to ensure stability professionally and financially.
Candidacy Status Application Process
Conditions for Pre-Application
Note: Programs applying for initial accreditation do not have to wait until they have a graduating class to apply.
Timing: Program assesses readiness for application for accreditation.
The following requirements must be met or completed during this stage in development and when submitting an application:
Program Director: Have hired a permanent Program Director that meets the minimum qualifications in the Standards for a Program Director. The position must be full time throughout the application process.
Applicant Program Campus: The program and campus applying for accreditation must award the degree which includes online applicant campuses.
Other campus institutional requirements: The sponsoring institution is accredited by a regional or national accrediting institutional organization recognized by the U.S. Department of Education (USDE) to offer a degree or the sponsoring institution accredited by a national accreditor with USDE provisions their Grant for Accreditation for establishing eligibility to participate in Title IV programs. Upon request, the applying campus program must provide the OPEID number assigned by the U.S. Department of Education as proof of participation for financial aid. State Board of Education approvals must also be completed.
Curriculum Requirements
Cancer Registry Curriculum
Programs will be evaluated against the NCRA curriculum requirements.
Standards
Cancer Registry Accreditation Standards
Cancer registry involves studying how to collect, manage, and analyze data on cancer cases. This includes tracking patient demographics, diagnoses, treatments, and outcomes to identify trends and improve healthcare. Students in this field learn about data management, public health, epidemiology, and cancer research. Cancer registry professionals support cancer prevention, clinical trials, and healthcare policy, playing a key role in improving cancer care and guiding healthcare decisions.
Website Requirements
Website Publication Requirements
CAHIIM is recognized by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA). As part of that recognition, accredited programs are required to publish student outcomes, in addition to our other public disclosure requirements.
The following items must be located on the main “landing page” for the academic program, rather than on sub-pages which require clicking a link from the landing page. It is, however, acceptable for this information to exist on expandable/collapsible sections of the landing page.
Programs submit the link to their landing page as part of their Annual Program Assessment Report (APAR).
For questions about these requirements, please contact info@cahiim.org.
Required Items
1. CAHIIM Seal
To obtain a copy of this image file, log into the APAR system and clicking “Resources”, then “CAHIIM accredited Logo graphic files.zip”
2. Accreditation Statement
The [HEALTH INFORMATION MANAGEMENT/HEALTH INFORMATICS] accreditor of [COLLEGE NAME] is the Commission on Accreditation for Health Informatics and Information Management Education (CAHIIM). The College’s accreditation for [ASSOCIATE/BACCALAUREATE/MASTER] degree in [HEALTH INFORMATION MANAGEMENT/HEALTH INFORMATICS] has been reaffirmed through [YEAR OF NEXT ACCREDITATON CYCLE]. All inquiries about the program’s accreditation status should be directed by mail to CAHIIM, 200 East Randolph Street, Suite 5100, Chicago, IL, 60601; by phone at (312) 235-3255; or by email at info@cahiim.org.
3. Student achievement/outcomes
Program must post program graduation rate AND employment rate, as well as at least one (1) of the following:
i. retention rate
ii. academic transfer
iii. graduate school entry
iv. 4-year undergraduate program entry/ Academic progression rate
v. student satisfaction rate
vi. certification exam pass rate (if applicable)
These outcomes must list the date and can be no older than the last full academic year.
Program can post as many more outcomes as desired; these are minimum requirements.
Definitions
CAHIIM does not require programs to use the following definitions, as these will not be applicable to all programs. If a program’s institution defines a particular rate in a different way, the program may use their institutional definition. The following definitions serve as examples.
Graduation rate – the percentage of a school’s first-time, first-year undergraduate students who complete their program within 150% of the published time for the program. For example, for a four-year degree program, entering students who complete within six years are counted as graduates (Definition from FAFSA). This cannot simply be a total number of graduates; it must be a rate.
Employment rate – the percentage of graduates from a program who are employed within a specified time frame. Program must specify the time frame (Ex. Within 6 months of graduation). Generally, graduates pursuing further education are not included in the total. For example: A program with 4 graduates, where 2 gained employment and 2 entered a graduate program would report a 100% (2/2) employment rate. Programs may choose to differentiate employment rate within a related field (healthcare) from the overall employment rate.
Retention rate – the percentage of a school’s first-time, first-year undergraduate students who continue at that school the next year. For example, a student who studies full-time in the fall semester and keeps on studying in the program in the next fall semester is counted in this rate (Definition from FAFSA).
Academic transfer – the percentage of a school’s first-time, first-year undergraduate students who transfer to another college within 150% of the published time for the program. For example, a student who is in a four-year degree program is counted as a transfer if the student goes to another college within six years (Definition from FAFSA).
Graduate school entry rate/4-yr undergraduate program entry – the percentage of a school’s graduates who enter a graduate program upon completion of the program.
4-year undergraduate program entry rate/Academic progression rate – the percentage of a school’s graduates who progress to a 4-year undergraduate program upon completion.
Student satisfaction rate – the percentage of students who have acknowledged satisfaction with their educational experience in the program, based on a student satisfaction survey.
Certification exam pass rate – the percentage of students who tested and passed the applicable certification exam for the program. For example, the pass rate for RHIT (Associate HIM programs) or RHIA (Baccalaureate HIM programs). NOTE: There is currently no applicable certification exam for Health Informatics programs.
Development & Consultation Service
CAHIIM offers assistance and advising service for programs who are in various stages of development and implementation. Paid services are available in developing accreditation and compliance activities toward program improvement.
