NCRA honors registry leaders and 2025 best papers at Louisville conference

The National Cancer Registrars Association recognized top professionals and research at its 2026 Annual Educational Conference in Louisville on May 7. The awards highlighted leadership in cancer registry work and papers on colorectal cancer trends and cancer outcomes tied to persistent poverty.

Why it matters: - The NCRA awards spotlight leadership, education and research that shape cancer registry practice. - The honors also highlight work that supports higher-quality cancer data, professional standards and registry training. - The Journal of Registry Management awards point to research with direct relevance to registry methods and cancer surveillance.

What happened: - The National Cancer Registrars Association presented awards during its Recognition and Awards Reception at the 2026 Annual Educational Conference in Louisville, Kentucky, on May 7, 2026. - Vanessa Hoffman, MBA, ODS-C received the Distinguished Member Award. - Amanda Schafranek, ODS-C received the April Fritz Outstanding New Professional Award. - The Journal of Registry Management presented its 2025 Best Paper Award and 2025 Honorable Mention Award at the conference. - Elekta sponsored the JRM awards.

The details: - Established in 1987, the NCRA Awards Program recognizes contributions to the cancer registry profession and the association. - The Distinguished Member Award honors an NCRA member for outstanding contributions to the profession and for advancing public awareness of the field. - Hoffman was recognized for sustained service, strategic leadership and professional excellence. - Her service to NCRA includes president from 2022 to 2023, High Level Strategic Group Liaison from 2024 to present, GPEC chair and member from 2024 to present, Advocacy Technology & Practice Board Director East from 2017 to 2021, Technical Advisory Liaison from 2023 to 2024, CoC Surveillance Partner from 2023 to 2024, and Education Program Chair from 2016 to 2017. - Hoffman has served on more than eight committees and has also been a member of the Tumor Registrars Association of Maryland. - The April Fritz Outstanding New Professional Award recognizes new NCRA members who have made a significant contribution to the profession. - The award is intended to encourage early-career professional growth and must be nominated within five years of earning the ODS credential. - Schafranek was recognized for building trust across teams and client environments, leading with clarity and bringing practical innovation. - Schafranek also received recognition for mentorship, outreach and national service. - Schafranek serves as an Education Board Director and participates in education-focused advisory work tied to cancer registry management training. - JRM Best Paper selections are made by reviewers who read each original article published in JRM during the 2025 publication year. - JRM papers must add meaningfully to knowledge about medical registry work and address the theory, practice and management of registries, professional development, or the collection, quality review, reporting and use of registry data. - The 2025 Best Paper was “Trends in Early-Onset and Late-Onset Colorectal Cancer by Subtype in New York State, 1976-2022.” - The Best Paper authors are Rakkoo Chung, PhD; Margaret Gates Kuliszewski, ScD; and Tabassum Insaf, PhD, MPH, MBBS. - The 2025 Honorable Mention was “The Effect of Persistent Poverty on Cancer Outcomes in California.” - The Honorable Mention authors are Frances B. Maguire, PhD, MPH; Ani S. Movsisyan Vernon, PhD, MS, MPH; Brenda M. Hofer, MS; Arti Parikh-Patel, PhD, MPH; Theodore Wun, MD, FACP; Shehnaz K. Hussain, PhD, ScM; and Theresa H. M. Keegan, PhD, MS.

Between the lines: - The awards suggest NCRA is emphasizing both operational leadership and research that can improve how cancer data are collected and used. - The mix of honors shows the association is rewarding long-term service and early-career impact in the same forum. - The JRM selections also show continued attention to population-level cancer trends and social factors such as persistent poverty.

What's next: - NCRA will continue using its awards program to highlight members and research that advance the profession. - The honored papers may help inform future registry practice, surveillance work and cancer outcomes research.

The bottom line: - NCRA used its annual conference to recognize the people and research helping drive cancer registry standards, training and data quality forward.