title: Cancer Screening 2016.
abstract: The primary goal of cancer screening is to reduce cancer-related mortality without incurring significant harm. Screening efforts for solid tumors, therefore, have targeted the precursors of the most common and the most deadly cancers-breast, cervical, colorectal, lung and prostate cancer. Balancing risk and benefit has led to controversy regarding the timing of cancer screening-when to begin, how often to screen and when to stop-and the nature of the modality of cancer screening-invasive or noninvasive, laboratory-centered or imaging-centered. Evidence-based guidelines published by general medical societies, subspecialty societies and publicly funded task forces on population-based screening aid healthcare providers in making individualized decisions with their patients.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine, University of Mississippi School of Medicine, Jackson, Mississippi. Electronic address: sthigpen@umc.edu.
authors.forename: S Calvin
authors.initials: SC
authors.lastname: Thigpen
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine, Quillen College of Medicine, East Tennessee State University, Johnson City, Tennessee.
authors.forename: Stephen A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Geraci
mesh_terms: D006801:Humans; D008403:Mass Screening / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000592:standards*; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis*
keywords: Cancer; Mortality; Prevention; Screening