Descriptive Data Statistics: National Cancer Institute Essay

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Descriptive Data

The notion of descriptive statistics is of paramount importance for the public health paradigm, as it provides professionals with the ability to analyze data and introduce new approaches to treatment patterns, professional training, and patient education. Some of the major tools of descriptive statistics may be divided into two groups: measures of central tendency and measures of variation. The former, including mean, median, and mode, is used in order to calculate the common characteristics of a given variable, whereas the latter, comprising variance, standard deviation, and range, aims at describing the extent of variation within the sample.

The definitions for the measures presented are as follows:

  • Mean = sum of all data points / number of data points;
  • Median = the value that’s exactly in the middle when it is ordered from low to high;
  • Mode = the most frequent value (Bhandari, 2020a, para. 2).
  • Range = the subtraction of the lowest data point from the highest point;
  • Variance = the average of squared distances from the mean;
  • Standard deviation = average distance of the mean (Bhandari, 2020b, para.2).

The major difference between the two types of measures is the fact that in cases when points of data within the variable differ significantly in their primary nomination, the measures of central tendency are not reliable enough to present the data. As far as the data from the National Cancer Institute are concerned, it is necessary to calculate the measures of deviation, as they help identify the patterns of cancer cases from a diachronic perspective, manifesting the difference between the cancer casualties and year of the report. In such a way, the tendencies of cancer incidence rates may be traced and analyzed by public health institutions.

MeasureAfrican Indian / Alaska Native (includes Hispanic)Asian / Pacific Islander (includes Hispanic)Black (includes Hispanic)Hispanic (any race)White (includes Hispanic)
Measures of central tendency
Mean43,27538,512570,0687531,4937562,725
Median43,8538,971,432,164,55
ModeN/A36,6N/A34,165,8
Measures of variability
Variance27,719333335,67983333345,428958338,39929166726,162
Standard Deviation5,2649153212,3832400916,7401007662,8981531485,114880253
Range19,77,821,6915,6

Analysis of the Statistics

Having considered the data from the Excel spreadsheet, the first important conclusion drawn from the variables is the positive tendency in terms of cancer incidence rates among all the minorities. Indeed, according to the range measure, the rates of cancer incidence per 100,000 are lower at least by nine data points. Thus, one may assume that the overall patterns of cancer incidence are gradually improving among all the ethnic groups.

When speaking of cancer incidence among the ethnic minorities, it becomes evident that even despite the overall improvement, the cancer incidence rates in the Black community remain unprecedently high. Moreover, the variance measure of 45,42895833 indicates that the change in rates over time may not be fully controlled by the statisticians, and such data cannot be efficiently generalized. The lowest rates, in their turn, may be identified within the Hispanic community.

The aforementioned data states that there is a significant discrepancy between the cancer incidence rates among various ethnic groups, and this gap is to be bridged by the quality public health intervention. First, medical professionals are to be educated on the matter of cultural competence and cancer predisposition rates among each ethnic community in order to implement a personalized approach to regular cancer diagnostics and disease prevention. Second, nurses as health advocates are to educate patients in the matter of cancer prevention and major risks regarding the individual’s ethnic and racial affiliation.

References

Bhandari, P. (2020a). . Sribbr. Web.

Bhandari, P. (2020b). Measures of variability. Scribbr. Web.

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