{"id":26319,"date":"2020-08-27T12:00:00","date_gmt":"2020-08-27T12:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.cancer.gov\/news-events\/cancer-currents-blog\/2020\/screening-cancer-older-adults-unnecessary"},"modified":"2024-11-03T15:16:19","modified_gmt":"2024-11-03T15:16:19","slug":"many-older-adults-screened-unnecessarily-for-common-cancers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ogkologos.com\/en\/many-older-adults-screened-unnecessarily-for-common-cancers\/","title":{"rendered":"Many Older Adults Screened Unnecessarily for Common Cancers"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Many older adults are undergoing unnecessary cancer screenings, a new study shows.<\/p>\n

Credit: iStock<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

Many older adults are being screened for cancer who no longer need to be, results from a new study show.<\/p>\n

Based on a nationwide survey, the study found that at least half of older adults had received at least one unnecessary cancer screening test<\/a> in the previous few years.<\/p>\n

The United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) recommends that people at average risk of cancer get colorectal cancer screening through age 75, breast cancer screening through age 74, and cervical cancer screening through age 65. <\/p>\n

In general, above those ages, people have a greater likelihood of being harmed by than benefiting from these tests, explained Barry Kramer, M.D., M.P.H., of NCI\u2019s Division of Cancer Control and Population Sciences<\/a>, who was not involved in the study.<\/p>\n

The term “overscreening” is used to describe the use of such tests past the point where they are likely to provide a net benefit.<\/p>\n

People often aren\u2019t aware that there are potential harms from cancer screening, explained Jennifer Moss, Ph.D., from Penn State University, who led the new study, which was funded in part by NCI and published July 27 in JAMA Network Open.<\/em> These harms can include false-positive test results<\/a> that lead to unnecessary follow-up procedures. <\/p>\n

\u201cBut what we\u2019re particularly worried about for older adults is the harm from the test itself. All of these screening tests are medical procedures that have potential side effects,\u201d Dr. Moss said. This risk of harm is highest for invasive tests, such as colonoscopy.<\/p>\n

Studies have shown that the overall benefits of screening, such as detecting cancer earlier when it’s potentially easier to treat, outweigh the likelihood of harms in younger adults. However, the harms increase as people age.<\/p>\n

Screening tests usually pick up slower growing cancers. \u201cFor some tests, it can take 10 to 15 years, or even more, to reveal their benefits. The older you are, the less likely you are to reap those benefits,\u201d said Dr. Kramer. As people grow older, the more they are likely to die of another cause before a cancer that might have been detected early on a screening test would have caused symptoms. <\/p>\n

\u201cThe harms, however, are front-loaded: they often occur at the time of the test or shortly thereafter,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat’s why these recommendations are in place, to make sure that people who get screened are going to benefit and that the likelihood of the risks or harms are minimized to the extent possible,\u201d Dr. Moss added.<\/p>\n

Widespread Testing, Regardless of Health<\/h2>\n

Reports from single hospitals have suggested that many older adults are getting overscreened. To get a better idea of these trends nationwide, Dr. Moss and her colleagues used data collected in 2018 by the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System<\/a>, a yearly national survey conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.<\/p>\n

They reviewed survey responses from more than 175,000 older women and men whose average age was 75 and recorded the ages at which participants last reported receiving cancer screening tests. They also looked at whether participants lived in a metropolitan area, because access to cancer screening can differ between urban and rural regions. <\/p>\n

The researchers also used self-reported health information from the survey to estimate participants\u2019 risk of dying from any cause within the next 10 years.<\/p>\n

More than 80% of survey participants lived in a metropolitan area, and almost three-quarters reported good, very good, or excellent health.<\/p>\n

Most participants reported having been screened for one or more cancer types \u201cafter they had \u2018aged out\u2019 of the recommended range for routine cancer screening,\u201d said Dr. Moss. \u201cWe found that overscreening was incredibly common. Overall, 45% to 75% of older adults were getting these tests [past the recommended age].\u201d<\/p>\n