Re:Are we screening too much for skin cancer? It's complicated
by DanBC on Thursday May 06, 2021 @07:18AM
(#27061563)
> As a result, people are now coming in to their doctors with prostate cancer at stage 3 or 4. Might be the right choice for society, but the wrong choice for the individual.
Hypothetical Bob is going to die when he's 78. We can tell Bob he has prostate cancer when he's 76, or when he's 70. Telling him does not make him live longer. But telling him does mean he may undergo treatment that degrades his quality of life, or even shortens his life.
How can we justify telling him when he's 70, when that won't make him live longer but could well make his life worse?
Hypothetical Bob is going to die when he's 78. We can tell Bob he has prostate cancer when he's 76, or when he's 70. Telling him does not make him live longer. But telling him does mean he may undergo treatment that degrades his quality of life, or even shortens his life.
How can we justify telling him when he's 70, when that won't make him live longer but could well make his life worse?