Validity of self-reported cancer history in the health examinees (HEXA) study: A comparison of self-report and cancer registry records

- The sensitivity was 72.0% and the positive predictive value was 81.9% for self-reported cancer history.
- The highest sensitivity was observed for breast cancer and the lowest for liver cancer.
- The validity of self-reported cancer history varied by sociodemographic factors.

PurposeTo assess the validity of the cohort study participants' self-reported cancer history via data linkage to a cancer registry database.MethodsWe included 143,965 participants from the Health Examinees (HEXA) study recruited between 2004 and 2013 who gave informed consent for record linkage to the Korean Central Cancer Registry (KCCR). The sensitivity and the positive predictive value of self-reported histories of cancer were calculated and 95% confidence intervals were estimated.ResultsA total of 4,860 participants who had at least one record in the KCCR were included in the calculation of sensitivity. In addition, 3,671 participants who reported a cancer history at enrollment were included in the calculation of positive predictive value. The overall sensitivity of self-reported cancer history was 72.0%. Breast cancer history among women showed the highest sensitivity (81.2%), whereas the lowest sensitivity was observed for liver cancer (53.7%) and cervical cancer (52.1%). The overall positive predictive value was 81.9%. The highest positive predictive value was observed for thyroid cancer (96.1%) and prostate cancer (96.1%), and the lowest was observed for cervical cancer (43.7%).ConclusionThe accuracy of self-reported cancer history varied by cancer site and may not be sufficient to ascertain cancer incidence, especially for cervical and bladder cancers.