Our History
Oregon Tumor Registrar’s Association (OTRA) was established in the mid 70’s and was changed to Oregon Cancer Registrar’s Association (OCRA) in 1987. The exact membership total is unknown for the early years but a roster was found from 1979 with 41 members. OCRA has had as many as 71 members but currently has a total of 53 members consisting of 45 active, 7 associate and 1 honorary member.
The first CTR exam was offered in 1983 and a large group from Oregon formed a study group and took the exam. OCRA also has a CTR scholarship award that was started years ago. In 2002, it was renamed the Michele Henson, CTR, Scholarship Award, in memory of a fellow registrar. The Association encourages obtaining your credentials, and is now awarded to two recipients each year. The Michele Henson Scholarship Award has been awarded a total of 16 times.
OCRA holds one workshop a year, in the fall. This workshop is a two and a half day meeting with one of those days being put on by OSCaR.
OCRA has participated within the community over the years in the Relay For Life, “In the Pink” for the Portland Golf Club supporting breast cancer research, American Cancer Society donation, Ice Bucket Challenge, volunteering and donations to the Ronald McDonald House of Portland.
The Oregon Comprehensive Cancer Program started in 1976 and ended in 1983. Oregon was without a state registry until it was passed through legislature in 1995, making cancer a reportable disease in 1996. With that, the Oregon State Cancer Registry (OSCaR) was formed and started with a staff of 4. Currently, OSCaR consists of 6 staff.