Dr. Otis Brawley has taken the gloves off on prostate cancer screening.
Brawley, chief medical officer of the American Cancer Society, makes some powerful statements about controversies in prostate cancer screening in a new YouTube video that is billed as the first of a series that the Cancer Society will post on discussions with ACS officials.
Key nuggets from this video – not surprising to anyone who has followed this debate or Brawley’s past comments – include these quotes:
“I’m very concerned. There’s a lot of publicity out there – some of it by people who want to make money by recruiting patients – that oversimplifies this – that says that ‘prostate cancer screening clearly saves lives.’ That is a lie. We don’t know that for sure…
…We’re very concerned about a number of clinics that are offering mass screening where informed decision making – where a man gets told the truth about screening and is allowed without pressure to make a decision – that’s not happening. Many of these free screening things, by the way, are designed more to get patients for hospitals and clinics and doctors than they are to benefit the patients. That’s a huge ethical issue that needs to be addressed.
We’re not against prostate cancer screening. We’re against a man being duped and deceived into getting prostate cancer screening.”
Opinions on other issues in news, journals, PR, advertising, marketing
Take all the issues enmeshed in any cancer screening story and amplify it with the liquid biopsy issue. @AP's @CarlaKJohnson. did a solid job here. https://apnews.com/article/science-business-health-hodgkin-lymphoma-oregon-ca899bb9c4c7f1859d4e9ce16a1cf78d
Come on, NY Times; you must do better than this. Important research doesn’t need hype and the “breaking news” BS doesn’t help readers or patients. https://www.healthnewsreview.org/2022/03/nyt-proclaims-breaking-news/
Comments (6)
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Dr. Thomas Kron
September 28, 2010 at 2:54 pmThank you very much. Very interesting. Some days ago the most important journals for physicians in Germany (Deutsches Ärzteblatt etc.) quoted a new swedish study: PSA-screening halfs mortality.
I think Klaus Koch, who had written a book about PSA, had been right having a lot of doubts.
Stan
October 5, 2010 at 3:46 pmGood job Gary.
This is a terrible situation that is turning many men off on going to their doctors.
Is there a way you can get to the ACS with a complaint? I am an advocate and am clearly insulted. Worse is turning men off on the PSA test. Info is power.
Stan
Armand Chichmanian
March 26, 2011 at 3:40 pmDr.Brawley mentioned many time that there is a risk of PSA tests. but not once did he say what those risks are.
I had radiation and my PSA went from 5.2 to 1.3 in 3 months.
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