Overdiagnosis, the detection and diagnosis of a condition that would not go on to cause symptoms or death in the patient’s lifetime, is an inevitable harm of screening.
Overdiagnosis in cancer screening can result from non-progression of the tumor or from competing mortality due to other patient conditions (that is, other conditions that would lead to the patient’s death before the cancer would have caused symptoms).
The consequences of overdiagnosis include unnecessary labeling of people with a lifelong diagnosis as well as unneeded treatments and surveillance that cause physical and psychosocial harm.
In this research, Carter et al set out to determine the optimal method for quantifying and monitoring overdiagnosis in cancer screening over time.
They conclude that well conducted ecological and cohort studies in multiple settings are the most appropriate approach for quantifying and monitoring overdiagnosis in cancer screening programs. To support this work, we need internationally agreed standards for ecological and cohort studies and a multinational team of unbiased researchers to perform ongoing analysis.
Read the full research:
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