Did Screening Save His Life?

[sandyRoe]

An MP talking on the radio the other day mentioned that he had part of a lung removed following a diagnosis of cancer. I'd guess that he'd been paying for his health checks and would consider the money paid for them well spent.
If he'd not been in a position to do that would his prospects have been bleaker?

[Sqad]

Depends.
If the lung cancer was a spread from another organ e.g kidney, then the outcome would have been the same whatever or whenever it was diagnosed.

However......if it was a lung cancer in it's own right and not spread from an other organ, then you pose an interesting question.
At one time in the UK there was a screening programme for lung cancer and this picked up many cases and "may" have saved lives.
This programme has now been discontinued in the U.K for various reasons.

"The earlier the diagnosis, the better the prognosis" slips easily of the tongue, but unfortunately it is not that simple.

[rowanwitch]

A lot were picked up after the awareness campaign recently about persistent coughing. The blood when you wee message is now out there too. It's getting to people with the idea you are not a time waster, neither should you put off getting things checked.

[ABerrant]

"I'd guess that he'd been paying for his health checks"

From this report...
https://news.sky.com/story/james-brokenshire-calls-for-end-to-lung-cancer-stigma-as-he-confirms-he-has-disease-11264491

"Mr Brokenshire first became concerned before Christmas when he cleared his throat and noticed a small amount of blood in his tissue. It was his only symptom but it prompted him to visit his GP, who referred him for a series of tests."

Sounds like typical NHS procedure to me.

"Did Screening Save His Life?"

No, there was no such screening but he has been campaigning for such screening since.

http://www.newsshopper.co.uk/news/16186610.Bexley_MP_diagnosed_with_lung_cancer_calls_for_action_to_improve_survival_rates/

[Peter Pedant]

it isn't clear that screening can save lives from lung cancer
the tests have risks
they can be expensive
from the CRUC site on screening for lung cancer

uses spiral CT - I cant get the dose

It is possible to cost how much moolah it takes to find every case.
Do a thousand and find perhaps two - then the cost of fiding each one is half the cost of processing a thousand spiral CTs ( which is a sugnificant sum )

if you cant show the patients live any longer then you have a good case not to do it. - which I thought was the case in ca lung
(but hey things change)

[Peter Pedant]

screening for Downs Syndrome in pregnant leddies
for example
the proposed treatment is vaginal termination
which is kinda eek ! rather er a severe treatment of an incurable genetic disease

the cure being the state of not having Downs babies born ......

[Peter Pedant]

sorry rambling
staying here in the shelter
there are now TWO berserka threads in full swing on AB
wiv everyone loudly contributing what they said last night - - - AGAIN,
more loudly in case people didnt hear or understand.......

[sandyRoe]

Yep, Islamophobia seems to have infected AB as effectively as Spanish Flu did the world after WW1.