More Cancer Screening Controversy

By Rachel Stockton

One typically wouldn’t think that a non-profit organization as well financed as the American Cancer Society would have to worry about its image.

However, the ACS has gotten a few credibility hits over the last few weeks:

*A spokesperson for ACS told the New York Times that they had overstated the benefits of breast cancer screening.  Additionally, a well known breast cancer surgeon from the University of California San Francisco stated in an article in the Journal of the American Medical Association that there are “serious” procedural flaws in the screening process for both breast and prostate cancer.

*The New York Times extrapolated further by interviewing a number of breast cancer experts who said there was no real benefit in screening women from 40-50.

*Researchers from UCLA announced the results of a pivotal study that showed that clinicians found more polyps during colonoscopies that were done early in the day; and the reason doesn’t have anything to do with the “technology” surrounding the process.  It’s a bit more mundane than that – the UCLA team stated the discrepancy was due to “provider fatigue.”  In other words, those administering the screenings are more alert during the morning, which results in them finding 27% more polyps before noon, according to the journal Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology.

*New research is revealing that there are some flaws in the cervical cancer screening process, which surprises many; Pap Smears, it seems, are not quite as reliable as everyone thought.

There is an upshot in all of this; and it’s no small matter.  The ACS has been forthcoming regarding the evidence that has come to light.  Let’s hope that the next step in all of this controversy will be a concerted effort to improve and overhaul the entire screening process.