Principles of Evidence Based Screening for Cancers

Cancer is a major public health concern. Current estimates suggest that approximately 3 out of every 10 people will be diagnosed with cancer at some point during their lifetime. The American Cancer Society (ACS) estimates that about 1.25 million people in the US will be diagnosed with cancer each year, with nearly 550,000 subsequent deaths. The financial burden of cancer and cost in human lives is staggering. In 1990,it was estimated that the economic burden from cancer in the US was $104 billion: $35 billion for direct costs of prevention, diagnosis and treatment; $12 billion for morbidity costs (economic losses caused by days lost from productive activity because of illness-related disability); and $57 billion in mortality costs (lost economic output measured by loss in earnings because of premature death of productive individuals).