Cancer Screening: Are we harming the healthy?

Health experts are divided over the benefits of cancer screening – are we saving lives or harming lives? Some experts argue that widespread screening, such as for breast and prostate cancer, can lead to over-detection and over-treatment of illnesses which are not life threatening. Healthy people can be unnecessarily alarmed, falsely diagnosed, or subjected to invasive procedures that can cause emotional and physical harm. Critics say cancer screening does little to prevent deaths or extend life expectancy, which is the goal of mass population screening. However, medical experts who support cancer screening programs and new-generation genetic tests argue that we are saving millions of lives and preventing untold suffering by detecting early-stage cancers. Promoters of genetic testing say that people who have a family history of cancer can benefit from knowing if they carry a heightened risk of disease. Agreement between experts about cancer screening is urgently needed so that Australians can be better educated about their options, and make informed choices. In this panel discussion University of Sydney experts talk basic science to lived experience. A Sydney Ideas event held on 29 July 2015 http://sydney.edu.au/sydney_ideas/lectures/2015/health_forums.shtml