This oncologist says the USPSTF gets it wrong on skin cancer screening

In July 2016, the U.S. Preventative Services Task Force (USPSTF) published updated skin cancer screening guidelines in JAMA, concluding “current evidence is insufficient” to screen for skin cancer in adults. The guidelines were formulated on a literature review of studies conducted in asymptomatic patients 15 years and older at general risk for skin cancer from 1995-2015; after identifying nearly 13,000 articles spanning two decades of work worldwide, the authors selected 13 studies to answer specified “key questions,” such as whether direct evidence exists that skin cancer screening reduces morbidity and mortality. One study, the SCREEN trial conducted in Northern Germany, was a population-based skin cancer screening program that included physician training, a public awareness campaign, and a dermatology referral protocol. During a 1-year intervention period (2003 to 2004), 19 percent of the eligible population was screened, the majority were women (73.6 percent) with a mean age of 49.7 years: Of those screened, 39 percent were referred to dermatology and failed to keep the appointment. Regardless, over a 10-year period, age- and sex-adjusted melanoma mortality decreased by 48 percent in the intervention region, although the absolute impact (mortality difference of 0.8 melanoma deaths per 100,000 persons) was small by comparison. The question of “harms” of skin cancer screening was addressed by the number of excisions required and the cosmetic satisfaction with s...
Source: Kevin, M.D. - Medical Weblog - Category: Journals (General) Authors: Tags: Physician Cancer Dermatology Source Type: blogs