[The undesirable, psychologically adverse effects of screening]

The psychological adverse effects might play an important role in the non-compliance with the offered screening examination. The possible sources of them are three-fold: 1. The general human attitude, such as the rejection of health interventions, particularly those aiming at the prevention of eventual future health problems instead of handling existing complaints and symptoms at present; the screening can be seen as a "future-oriented" intervention. 2. The cultural image of cancer and the disbelief of its curability. 3. The subjective experiences in relation to the screening process. The providers have to do their best to eliminate these causes: by means of a) health education addressing people of various ages, social classes and cultural levels, promoting the understanding of the importance of disease prevention, and, changing their negative, defeatist attitude towards cancer; b) minimizing the psychological adverse effects of all kinds. This can be done by proper organisation of the screening process; optimizing the quality of work, and, provision of good quality of information and advice to the screenees before, during and after the screening.