May 15
Screening for Major Diseases — Does it help?
The Cutter Lectures on Preventive Medicine – 10th Symposium
Part of the Cutter Lectures on Preventive Medicine series, The 10th Cutter Symposium “Screening for Major Diseases—Does It Help?” will feature three separate lectures from expert speakers on the topic of screening for colorectal cancer, prostate cancer, and infectious diseases followed by a moderated Q&A segment with all the speakers. This symposium is open to the public.
Schedule of talks:
| 1:00PM | Introducing the Cutter Symposium Albert Hofman, MD, PhD |
| 1:05PM | The Power of Colorectal Cancer Screening Hermann Brenner, MD. MPH Abstract: Over 30 years ago, in 1993, a groundbreaking analysis of the US National Polyp Study was published, which suggested that colonoscopic removal of colorectal polyps was associated with an 88% reduction of colorectal cancer incidence. Since then, numerous observational studies and randomized trials have confirmed effectiveness of colorectal cancer screening, even though most of them substantially underestimated screening effects for various reasons. Large heterogeneity in introduction of and adherence to screening programs across countries in the last three decades is mirrored in large heterogeneity of trends in colorectal cancer incidence and mortality. Modelling studies based on the accumulated evidence confirm that the vast majority of the approximately one million colorectal cancer deaths per year globally could be prevented by screening. |
| 1:35PM | Controversies and Innovations in Screening for Prostate Cancer Lorelei Mucci, ScD Abstract: More than 1.6 million men across the globe are diagnosed with prostate cancer annually, and it is the leading cause of cancer death in more than 50 countries. In randomized controlled trials, screening with prostate specific antigen (PSA) has been shown to reduce cancer mortality over two decades. However, PSA screening also has led to overdiagnosis of prostate cancers that have a low potential for metastasis and concomitant overtreatment of patients. What has ensued over the past two decades has been an active debate about the harms and benefits of screening, guidelines that are often in conflict with one another, and in the United States, a substantial reduction in prostate cancer screening that is now tied to an uptake in incidence of metastatic prostate cancer. This talk will provide an overview of the history of PSA screening, the evidence around risks and harms, the controversies, and recent innovations in approaches to accelerate a risk stratified approach to screening. |
| 2:05PM | Diagnostics, Screening, and Surveillance in Pandemics Marc Lipsitch, DPhil Abstract: This talk will describe challenges and opportunities for surveillance during large infectious disease events, with lessons from COVID-19 and earlier pandemics. Active testing of population-based random samples provide numerous advantages over passive case detection in many situations, while linked data on demographics, severity, and pathogen variant among other characteristics are far more valuable for decision making than the same data if unlinked. Better data can inform more efficient decisions about control measures that improve the ratio of disease control effectiveness to cost and disruption. |
| 2:35PM | General Discussion |
| 3:00PM | Closing by Albert Hofman |
Speakers will share their own perspectives; they do not speak for Harvard.
Speaker Information
Organizers
ⓘ Harvard Chan School hosts a diverse array of speakers, invited to share both scholarly research and personal perspectives. They do not speak for the School, and hosting them does not imply endorsement of their views, organizations, or employers.