Case-based interpretation of best medical coding practices—Application to data collection for cancer registries

Abstract

Cancer registries are important tools in the fight against cancer. At the heart of these registries is the data collection and coding process. Ruled by complex international standards and numerous best practices, operators are easily overwhelmed. In this paper, a system is presented to assist operators in the interpretation of best medical coding practices. By leveraging the arguments used by the coding experts to determine the best coding option, the proposed system is designed to answer the coding questions from operators and provide an answer associated with a partial explanation for the proposed solution.