I have just read an interesting article on the subject of 'overdiagnosis' which is of special relevance at this time when we find ourselves in the midst of the controversy regarding screening for prostate cancer.
The NHS Choices article reviews a 'Daily Mail' (U.K.) newspaper report about a British Medical Journal article, the authors of which say that there is increasing evidence that too many people are being overdosed, overtreated and overdiagnosed.
Ths NHS article gives an excellent explanation of the term 'overdiagnosis' and gives examples relating to such conditions as breast and thyroid cancers, chronic kidney disase, asthma, osteoporosis, high cholesterol and, of course, prostate cancer.
Click here for the full NHS Choices article
Friday, June 1, 2012
Wednesday, May 30, 2012
Prostate Cancer Screening - the Debate Continues
As we have already reported in this recent post, there has already been some professional criticism of the US Preventive Services Task Force Policy advising against routine prostate cancer screening.
It was with interest that I read two commentaries from prostate cancer expert Dr. Gerald Chodak which address some of these criticisms.
The first point Dr. Chodak makes is that the criticism is almost exclusively focussed on the men who MIGHT miss out on 'potentially curative therapy' and ignores all those men who are actually being harmed by screening and treatment.
On his website ProstateVideos.com, Dr. Chodak has created a checklist of facts about prostate cancer in the form of a prostate cancer screening consent form which can help to put the current 'debate' into perspective and is well worth reading.
In his second commentary, Dr. Chodak refers to and recommends the following CNN article written by psychologist Dr. Charles Raison who talks about the mental health side of PSA screening:
The Danger of Fearing Cancer
It was with interest that I read two commentaries from prostate cancer expert Dr. Gerald Chodak which address some of these criticisms.
The first point Dr. Chodak makes is that the criticism is almost exclusively focussed on the men who MIGHT miss out on 'potentially curative therapy' and ignores all those men who are actually being harmed by screening and treatment.
On his website ProstateVideos.com, Dr. Chodak has created a checklist of facts about prostate cancer in the form of a prostate cancer screening consent form which can help to put the current 'debate' into perspective and is well worth reading.
In his second commentary, Dr. Chodak refers to and recommends the following CNN article written by psychologist Dr. Charles Raison who talks about the mental health side of PSA screening:
The Danger of Fearing Cancer
Sunday, May 27, 2012
Review of the Effectiveness of Saw Palmetto for treating BPH
Saw Palmetto is a herbal remedy used by many men to treat the symptoms of benign prostatic hyperplasia (enlarged prostate).
Although early studies on the use of Saw Palmetto confirmed that symptoms of BPH such as difficulty urinating, dripping and frequent urination at night were all eased using the remedy, a review of 17 more recent studies (which used more reliable testing methods) show that Saw Palmetto was no better at alleviating these symptoms than placebo.
The leader of one of the most recent of the studies, Dr. Michael Barry, agreed that taking Saw Palmetto definitely did make a difference to the symptoms but the improvement was seen equally in those men in the trial who took only the placebo.
Dr. Barry said that some men may still want to try Saw Palmetto as just the expectation of feeling better will yield some improvement.
For details of the research and the treatment of BPH, read the full Reuters Health Report.
Although early studies on the use of Saw Palmetto confirmed that symptoms of BPH such as difficulty urinating, dripping and frequent urination at night were all eased using the remedy, a review of 17 more recent studies (which used more reliable testing methods) show that Saw Palmetto was no better at alleviating these symptoms than placebo.
The leader of one of the most recent of the studies, Dr. Michael Barry, agreed that taking Saw Palmetto definitely did make a difference to the symptoms but the improvement was seen equally in those men in the trial who took only the placebo.
Dr. Barry said that some men may still want to try Saw Palmetto as just the expectation of feeling better will yield some improvement.
For details of the research and the treatment of BPH, read the full Reuters Health Report.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)