Cancer

Prostate-cancer screening: Guideline reflects lack of knowledgeable expert input

The last guideline on prostate-cancer screening was published in 2014. At the time, the task force approached the Canadian Urologic Association (CUA) and asked that it provide an expert panel of “stakeholders” to provide input....We found that the task force guideline utilized only data from a small number of randomized trials and ignored scores of other relevant studies. The analysis of the studies that were reviewed was superficial and the guideline was flawed.

Breast-cancer screening: Balancing harm vs. risks

One would expect that the priority of the Canadian Task Force on Preventive Health Care on breast-cancer screening would be to recommend practices that would maximally reduce mortality and morbidity from disease. In the case of breast cancer, this suggests focusing on effective guidelines for those who are at increased probability of developing disease or increased risk of late diagnosis and the consequent higher likelihood of premature death or morbidity associated with treating advanced disease.

Excluding experts doesn’t make sense

Most assume that the Canadian task force guidelines are led by content expert specialist clinicians. But this is not the case. The task force says it excludes content experts from genuine involvement in guideline development to avoid conflicts of interest. However, in the Canadian health-care context, this is not a valid argument.

Do doctors know enough about the commercial determinants of health?

Private sector activities have a real impact on people's health. We need to promote healthy cross-industry regulation and scrutinize the role that private interests play in the health-policy arena to help safeguard the health of patients.

It’s not all pretty in pink: To prevent breast cancer, let’s stop missing the forest for the trees

Breast cancer rates, even among young people, are on the rise. For this Breast Cancer Awareness month, there's more we could be doing to prevent the disease before it starts.

Mushrooms, nuts and collard greens: Nutrition and how to lower the odds of breast cancer

Breast cancer is the product of many factors over a lifetime. While some of those factors are out of our control, others like diet offer opportunities to mitigate risk.

Should “magic mushrooms” be legalized? Experts weigh in

Psilocybin, a psychedelic compound found in "magic mushrooms", is making waves for its therapeutic benefits in treating psychiatric conditions like major depressive disorder and end-of-life anxiety. But does that mean it should be legalized? We asked a panel of experts to weigh in.

Lung-cancer screening – primum non nocere (first, do no harm)!

Lung cancer is the number one global killer among cancers. Early detection can help patients' chance of survival but current screening measures also come with mixed benefits and risks.

We have the tools to prevent ovarian cancer. Why aren’t we using them?

About 20 per cent of the ovarian cancer cases in Canada diagnosed each year are in people who carry a mutation and are most likely preventable. Genetic testing can become more accessible. Why are we waiting? 

Sometimes the truth is unbearable

The health-care system is failing Canadians with lethal consequences. Policymakers need to make urgent changes now to address delays in access to care.

Trust us to make our own decisions about breast-cancer screenings

The new U.S. guidance on breast-cancer screening shouldn’t be controversial or a “both sides” issue in Canada. It should serve as a model for the change we need.

Cancer survival rates have significantly improved. Now we must pay attention to rehabilitation

Cancer survivors should not be left to feel like they need to manage their impairments on their own. There are models for cancer centres across Canada that can provide timely and comprehensive rehabilitation services.

Synthetic data may revolutionize clinical trials – and save lives

Behind each clinical trial, there are real human lives at stake. Advancements in synthetic data could lead us to a future in which every cancer patient enrolled in a clinical trial is guaranteed hope.

Having breast cancer impacts sexuality: Why don’t we talk about it?

It's common for women to struggle with sexual health issues after breast cancer. But it isn’t just our bodies that change; the experience of cancer changes our relationship with time, aging and even the arc of life that we imagine for ourselves.

‘Technology to help bridge the gap’: Smart homes and sensors ease caregiver burden

Smart home technology has become ubiquitous in recent years. Now researchers in Ottawa are finding ways to use this same technology to aid health-care workers, family caregivers, and allow patients to age in place.

Food and mental health: Happy gut, happy mind

The food we eat every day is the subject of an ongoing conversation between the bacteria in our gut and our immune cells. This conversation dictates whether we are taking one step closer to health or one step closer to disease.

Behind the scenes: The increasingly complex – and common – radiation treatment for cancer

Radiation therapy for cancer is becoming increasingly complex, sophisticated and personalized. Behind the scenes for most patients hides an invisible team hard at work.

The key to living longer and better? Dying at home

Despite our preferences, most Canadians do not have the privilege of dying at home. Although it is not possible to guarantee a good death, it is possible to reduce your risk of a bad death by thinking and talking about end-of-life.

The gift of a better death

Canadians need universal and equitable access to high-quality palliative care. It’s time to talk about death and dying more openly and ask ourselves: What is a good death?

New drug to treat prostate cancer may be out of reach for most Canadians

A new, last-hope prostate cancer treatment has been approved by Health Canada but may be out of reach for most of the more than 4,500 men who die of the disease each year.