This week we heard that screening for prostate cancer may do more harm than good—particularly for older men. I understand that, I suppose. Prostate cancer tends to grow slowly, and the significance of test results is not entirely clear.

I worry that in a twist of logic we will generalize a very specific recommendation. I worry that the message will shift from “Men over 75 should not be screened for prostate cancer” to “No-one should be screened for prostate cancer” to (and this is the scariest part) “I shouldn’t be screened for any cancer.”

Every day in the United States more than 100 people die of colorectal cancer because they weren’t screened when they should have been. Every day.
Colorectal cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death in this country, yet a simple screening will reduce the risk of having this disease by 80% or more.

The debate about prostate cancer screening will go on for a long time. One thing is not debatable though—cancer screening in general, and screening for colon cancer in particular, saves lives.

http://coloncancer.typepad.com/