Most people are familiar with the concept of undergoing general health checks. This might mean that your doctor talks to you about your medical history and lifestyle including diet, physical... Read more
A groundbreaking new study is examining how the media globally report on the benefits and harms of tests for healthy people. Dr Mary O’Keeffe, from the School of Public Health at the Univers... Read more
One of the four areas of focus for development of the new National Preventive Health Strategy is “current and emerging opportunities in cancer and chronic disease population screening”, and... Read more
Depression can be difficult to detect in routine clinical consultations, and health professionals sometimes use brief screening questionnaires to identify people who need further evaluation.... Read more
In the aftermath of Angelina Jolie’s recent disclosure about having had a preventive double mastectomy, there have been several thoughtful articles that are worth reading, including th... Read more
For those who like to cast public health as the breeding ground of moralistic puritans, check out this rather erotic clip from PapScreen Victoria, promoting Pap tests. While I might wish the... Read more
Among the many announcements ahead of tonight’s Federal Budget was this one of an expansion of bowel cancer screening. In the article below, Terry Slevin, Education and Research Direc... Read more
An ACCC investigation into breast imaging highlights broader concerns about a lack of regulation of unregistered health practitioners, writes Rebecca Johnson, Policy Advisor, Cancer Council... Read more
This article – on the potential downsides of a public awareness campaign about ovarian cancer – reminds me of health media watchdog Gary Schwitzer’s comment that “all screening tests cause h... Read more
Please note that I have corrected Gary Schwitzer’s bio from the original post (corrected on 8 Sept) Gary Schwitzer was a health journalist for many years, working in radio and TV (incl... Read more
