News supplied by DACC

Danville Area Community College recently received an in-kind donation valued at $10,000 to support the College’s new Cancer Registry Management program.
ERS, a Health Catalyst Company is an industry leader in cancer-registry support. ERS has
donated its nationally acclaimed CRStar software to DACC, providing the College with CRStar
licenses for up to 25 students.
Introduced this year, DACC’s 30-credit certificate program in cancer registry can be completed
within a year and is fully available online. The program includes a virtual practicum that affords
students with hands-on experience to prepare them for careers in this high-demand field.
Hospitals and central registries hire graduates to work in a variety of roles, including as certified
tumor registrars or as oncology data analysts. As DACC’s program director Kelly Johnson
explains, “People in the field of cancer registry are helping save lives. They provide the data and
insights that cancer researchers and public-health officials need to develop cancer treatment and
improve cancer prevention. They also gather information to improve the cancer care for every
patient on an individual basis.”
Besides offering students a real-life experience in cancer registry, CRStar enhances instructor
training, such as through the use of simulated data for homework exercises or tests. Ms. Johnson
will begin receiving CRStar training in early January so that the new system can be introduced
to cancer-registry students during the Spring semester.
Rohit Nayak, the chief executive officer of ERS, was pleased to support DACC’s new program
with the donation of CRStar software. He says, “While there are many opportunities for
donations in cancer care, the ERS team determined that the best way for us to leverage our
impact and funds would be through helping provide new certified tumor registrars with a strong,
practical foundation of their real-world impact through access to our technology. We are thrilled

and appreciative about how this is being received by education institutions such as DACC as
they achieve their own objectives.”
With DACC’s cancer-registry program one of the few in the nation to be available 100-percent
online, Ms. Johnson has begun casting a wide net for students. She says, “For several months
now, we’ve been marketing DACC’s program to prospective students in targeted cities across
the country. Earning a DACC certificate in cancer registry—especially with our association with
ERS and its CRStar product—gives our program instant credibility and will help assure that our
graduates will be in high demand by hospitals and care centers in any part of the country they
choose.”
On behalf of the College, the DACC Foundation is the official recipient of the ERS donation and
plans to recognize the gift in the near future with a “Big Check” ceremony.