Experts are debating whether some cancers shouldn’t be called that

Experts are debating whether some cancers shouldn’t be called that
JAMA; Rita Rubin, MA; 1/25
Back in 2012, the National Cancer Institute (NCI) convened a conference to discuss the overdiagnosis and overtreatment of indolent tumors—asymptomatic lesions unlikely to progress for years—that are detected by mammography, prostate-specific antigen (PSA) testing, and other screening tools. “I don’t think the name is that important,” acknowledged Hwang, who participated in the 2012 NCI conference about overdiagnosis and overtreatment. “It’s how we react to the diagnosis and how we convey risk to the patients.” In other words, stop calling low-risk tumors cancer, but make sure patients understand that such lesions are risk factors for cancer and, therefore, require diligent monitoring. Or keep calling the tumors cancer, but make sure patients understand that these lesions are unlikely to cause problems, so active surveillance, not immediate treatment, is appropriate.