[Overdiagnosis in cancer]

Overdiagnosis of cancer is the detection of asymptomatic cancers that do not grow or they are growing with such slowness, that they would never have caused medical problems in the patient during the course of their life. Often they are tumours that are detected through population screenings but also in the clinical context due to incidental findings from image tests with advanced technology. Some of these tumours could even disappear spontaneously without treatment. The patient may die as a result of another disease before the cancer has caused symptoms. For that reason, the diagnosis of these tumours is an important cause of over-treatment, which can include serious risks and toxicity. Although overdiagnosis can occur in any disease, it is more relevant in the case of cancer.