A patient bursts into the hos-pital, upset, convinced she has ovarian cancer. She says she has proof: a blood test, ordered by her family doctor, shows elevated amounts of CA125, a protein sometimes found on cancerous cells. But the emergency doctors learn that neither the patient nor her immediate family members have histories of ovarian cancer, which means she should never have undergone the test in the first place: it is not designed for the general population. The patient had heard about the test and asked her own physician to perform it, just in case, setting off a chain of events that led her to the hospital.
Raj Waghmare, an emergency-room doctor in Newmarket, Ontario, says he has repeatedly seen situations like this one — patients rushing to the ER after receiving unnecessary lab results. CA125 testing is most often recommended for women who have or are suspected to have ovarian cancer: it can help determine whether a treatment is working or the cancer has reappeared. But, when used to screen patients who don’t have that history, it can deliver false positives, leading to unwarranted panic and interventions. After conducting a pelvic ultrasound, hospital staff assured the patient that she was fine and sent her home.
Esta historia es de la edición December 2019 de The Walrus.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 8500 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor ? Conectar
Esta historia es de la edición December 2019 de The Walrus.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 8500 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor? Conectar
Invisible Lives
Without immigration status, Canada's undocumented youth stay in the shadows
My Guilty Pleasure
"The late nights are mine alone, and I'll spend them however I damn well please"
Vaclav Smil Is Fed Up
The acclaimed environmental scientist is criticizing climate activists, shunning media, and stepping back just when we need him most
It's Time for a Birth Control Revolution
What the pill teaches us about the failure - and future - of women's health care
Would You Watch a Play about Hydro Electricity?
How documentary theatre struck a chord in Quebec
Still Spinning
One record chain has bet big on a new appetite for physical media
Just So You Know, I Love My Mother
In many ways, multi-generational living makes sense. But that doesn't make it easy
Art of the Steal
Why are plundered African artifacts still in Western museums?
Canada in the Middle
What role can we play in easing the war in Gaza?
Canadian Multiculturalism: A Work in Progress
As we mark fifty years since the adoption of Canada’s federal multiculturalism policy, human rights advocate AMIRA ELGHAWABY celebrates its merits and reflects on the work that is yet to be done when it comes to inclusion, acceptance, and fighting systemic racism in our country.