“Cancer screening is a waste of money! Old Li next door has a physical examination every year. Didn’t he get diagnosed with liver cancer last month?” go in.
“Don’t talk about other things, I have already paid the money, it’s more than 8,000, hurry up and check it for me.”
Old Zhang is an “old man” Smoking gun”, has been smoking for more than 40 years. After learning about the neighbor’s cancer, Lao Zhang’s daughter hurriedly made an appointment for a cancer screening package at the local tertiary hospital, which included more than 50 items, except In addition to cancer screening programs, it also includes programs such as diabetes, heart disease, and more.
But in Lao Zhang’s opinion, this thing is the “IQ tax”, and it will cost money to cure the disease.
Cancer screening has always been a hot topic. Most hospitals have set up cancer screening packages with a wide range of items and a wide range of prices. Some people think that the more expensive is good, while others I think it’s “making money”.
Han Qide, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and a pathophysiologist, delivered such a speech at the 2016 ‘Medicine and Humanities Summit Forum’: “I do not advocate cancer screening for healthy people
strong>, because after early screening of cancer, the mortality rate has not actually decreased, and such a test is really of little significance.”
For ordinary people, cancer screening is really necessary ?
I. One or two cancer screenings cost at least one or two thousand yuan. Is it necessary?
Most hospitals now offer cancer screening packages. Xiaojiu checked online and found that the prices of different hospitals/check-up centers fluctuate greatly, low is one or two Thousands and highs ranging from more than 10,000 yuan.
Tumor screening package of the Physical Examination Center of Guangzhou Panyu District Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital (Source: Zhongkang Physical Examination Network)
Guangzhou Aikang Junan Physical Examination Center (VVIP Department) Tumor Screening Package (Source: Zhongkang Physical Examination Network)
The purpose of cancer screening is to let the subjects know their own Cancer risk, early detection of precancerous lesions or early stage cancer, so as to intervene at an early stage. But cancer screening does not mean that the more items and the more expensive it is, the better and more comprehensive it is.
Liu Juntian, Director of Cancer Prevention Medical Center, Tianjin Medical University Cancer Hospital thinks that cancer screening should be individualized, and it is not recommended for everyone to do a full set of cancer screening programs , not only will it cause economic waste, but also chest X-ray, CT and other examinations are destructive, and doing too much may cause certain damage to the body.
Similarly, Academician Han Qide also believes that it is not recommended for everyone to do universal cancer screening, should be checked according to their own symptoms, do not do it if they have no symptoms Check, otherwise it will be over-checked, over-treated, but harmful to health.
Second, early detection of cancer may save many families hundreds of thousands
2020 In 2018, a study in the journal Cancer analyzed the financial distress of cancer patients in China.
Studies show that 1 in 2 cancer patients in my country borrow money to see a doctor, of which 18% borrow more than 50,000, and 1 in 10 patients. One person had to give up some cancer treatments due to lack of money.
If early cancer screening can be done well, a large number of patients and their families can avoid this dilemma.
So early detection of cancer is very important, especially in high-risk groups. The point of cancer screening is to personalize your screening, not to blindly choose packages.
3. How to do cancer screening? A one-time explanation.
Recently, the 28th National Cancer Prevention and Control Awareness Week was successfully held in Beijing. Treatment methods give the latest guidelines.
1. Esophageal cancer: endoscopy
High-risk group: over 40 years old, long-term smoking and drinking, esophageal cancer Family history, living in an area with a high incidence of esophageal cancer, likes to eat hot, pickled, and hard food, and has a foreign body sensation or pain when swallowing.
Screening recommendations: High-risk groups should receive an endoscopy, and if there is no abnormality, follow-up endoscopy every 2-3 years Check; if there is any abnormality, follow-up endoscopy is performed once a year.
2. Gastric cancer: gastroscopy
High-risk group: over 40 years old, smoking history, alcoholism, Helicobacter pylori Infection, living in an area with a high incidence of gastric cancer, and having a family history of gastric cancer.
Screening recommendations: Gastric endoscopy is the first choice for gastric cancer screening. High-risk groups are recommended to undergo a gastroscopic examination once, and if there is no abnormality, a gastroscopic examination can be performed every 2-3 years;
3. Lung cancer: low-dose spiral CT
High-risk group: aged 40-74 years old, with a history of smoking or second-hand smoking, There is a history of occupational exposure for more than 1 year, a history of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and a first-degree relative who has been diagnosed with lung cancer.
Screening recommendations: Low-dose helical CT screening should be performed once a year in high-risk groups.
4. Liver cancer: serum alpha-fetoprotein detection combined with abdominal ultrasonography
High-risk groups: males aged 45-74 age, female aged 50-70 years old, with history of hepatitis B/C infection, history of liver cirrhosis, and history of liver cancer in first- or second-degree relatives.
Screening recommendations: serum alpha-fetoprotein test combined with abdominal ultrasonography is preferred for high-risk groups, and then the diagnosis is further confirmed based on the comprehensive evaluation results , treatment and review plan.
5. Colorectal cancer: colonoscopy and fecal occult blood testing
High-risk groups : Men 40 years and older with a positive fecal occult blood test, a history of smoking, overweight or obesity, and a first-degree relative with a family history of colorectal cancer.
Screening recommendations: Colorectal cancer screening should be performed in both high-risk groups aged 40-75 and low- and intermediate-risk groups aged 50-74. A high-quality colonoscopy is recommended every 5-10 years, plus a FIT every year.
6. Breast cancer: breast ultrasound
High-risk group: menarche before the age of 12, menopause after the age of 55, with Family history of breast or ovarian cancer, history of breast biopsy or surgery for benign breast disease, etc.
Screening recommendations: For high-risk groups and dense breast populations, breast ultrasound combined with mammography is recommended for screening. Only breast ultrasound examination can be done in the general population< /strong>. High-risk groups should receive annual breast cancer screening after the age of 40, and the general population aged 45-70 should receive breast cancer screening every 1-2 years.
Third, 1/3 of cancer is preventable, don’t ignore early symptoms
Sichuan Qiu Meng, chief physician of the Department of Abdominal Oncology, West China Hospital of the University, reminded that daily attention should be paid to physical discomfort and changes, which may be signals from cancer or precancerous diseases.
1. Unexplained weight loss
If within 6 months to 1 year, unexplained weight loss of more than 5%
strong>, and excluded benign disease factors such as insufficient energy intake, abnormal blood sugar, abnormal thyroid function and chronic diarrhea, and cancer should be alerted.
2. Unexplained mass on the body surface
Especially in the neck, armpit, breast, groin, testis and other parts of the body surface with unknown cause of the lump. And accompanied by poor activity, redness, pain, short-term rapid growth, and abnormal blood vessels, stains or color changes, check as soon as possible.
3. Changes in bowel habits
If long-term constipation, diarrhea, or constipation occurs Changes in bowel habits such as alternating with diarrhea should be alerted to the occurrence of gastrointestinal tumors, as well as pancreatic cancer and liver cancer.
4. Persistent cough
Lung cancer, breast cancer, colon cancer, kidney cancer, prostate cancer, etc., may cause persistent cough.
5. Unexplained pain
Including chronic diseases, bone lesions, direct or indirect compression of primary tumors or metastatic tumors, etc. If unexplained persistent pain occurs, especially deep pain, we must actively find out the cause of the pain and be alert to the occurrence of cancer.
Cancer is not a terminal disease. As long as it is detected and treated early, many cancers can still be cured. Regular checkups are a good thing, but cancer screenings need to be tailored to your risk of developing cancer, or you’re wasting money and hurting your body.
We should also pay more attention to the changes in our body every day. Once abnormal symptoms are found, we should go to the hospital for relevant examinations in time.
References:
[1]Is the tens of thousands of “cancer screening” worth it? A strategy for early cancer screening suitable for Chinese people. Life Times. 2019-05-22
[2] The latest release of the National Cancer Center: 6 major cancer screening methods! .Health Times.2022-04-14
[3]14 cancer signals you must know | Doctor’s business card.Health China.2021-12-19