Screening: Evidence and Practice. AE Raffle and JAM Gray

A belief in the advantages of being diagnosed in the early stages of illness is pervasive. The benefits are considered to be so self-evident that, even in the absence of empirical evidence, screening tests that improve the chances of diagnosis prior to the appearance of symptoms are promoted as a good use of health care resources. For some people, to know whether or not one is subject to possibly pathological changes is a right, even if gaining that knowledge has a negative impact on their lives and diverts resources from other health care activity. From the opening statement \u91all screening programmes do harm. Some do good as well \u85\u92, Raffle and Gray try to instill in their readers a more critical approach to screening programmes. The rise of screening during the 20th century is chronicled, contrasting the early adoption of the \u91routine health check\u92 in the United States with the later ..