Jeremy Laurance: Too much information can be bad
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Being told you have a life-threatening condition is no joke. The disease may be harmful, but so can the knowledge that you have it.
This is not widely understood by patients. There is an assumption that, if you have cancer, the sooner you know about it, the sooner you can do something about it and the better your chance of a cure.
While this is true, it is not always so. In some cases – one in three according to the latest study – the cancer detected in screening does not need treating, either because it resolves naturally or because it is very slow growing (so you die of something else).
In these cases, the only result of screening is that you spend more of your life living in the shadow of cancer, without living longer. You may be treated, and suffer pain and anxiety, to no avail. That is not just of no benefit – it is grim.
This is a problem for all screening programmes. In some cases, as with prostate screening, the problem of "overdiagnosis" is so great that routine screening is regarded as unwise (at least in the UK). In breast screening, overdiagnosis is a lesser problem so it is worthwhile offering it to women.
Ultimately, however, this is a matter that each woman can only decide for herself, having assessed the benefits and harms.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments