antigen (PSA) has led to mass over-diagnosis and over-treatment, a
new study contends.
Since the PSA screening test came into use in 1986, federal
government data show that the number of prostate cancer cases in the
United States has risen substantially, said the report in the Aug. 31
online issue of the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.
Treatments for prostate cancer include surgery and radiation therapy,
and possible side effects are incontinence and impotency.
"The ideal screening test would have no effect on the number of
cases," said study co-author Dr. H. Gilbert Welch, a professor of
medicine at the Dartmouth Medical School's Institute for Health
Policy and Clinical Practice. "It would change the time in life that
the cancers were diagnosed, but not the number. Instead, there has
been a sustained change in the number of cases -- 1.3 million more
that would not have been diagnosed previously."
The death rate from prostate cancer has fallen in the United States,
but not necessarily because of mass screening, Welch contended.
"There are a number of reasons why mortality might fall, but the most
obvious is that we have better treatment," he said. "Even without
early detection, I expect mortality would fall."
Results of a European study reported earlier this year indicated that
"to save the life of one man, 50 must be over-diagnosed," he said.
More ...
http://health.usnews.com/articles/health/healthday/2009/08/31/
prostate-cancer-over-diagnosed-study.html
