Philosophy
Dr. Richard Ablin, the medical researcher who discovered the prostate specific antigen in 1970, wrote an op/ed in The New York Times a couple weeks ago in which he argues that we are wating a tremendous amount of money on PSA tests for men. There is a slight correlation between elevated PSA levels and prostate cancer, but some cases of the deadly form do not raise the PSA number. More prevalent is the false positive, the case in which the PSA number goes up for a reason other than cancer. Dr. Ablin writes,
But my doctor is a trained professional who thinks deeply about what one can and cannot infer from imperfect evidence, what about those who are not so trained? We give imperfect evidence to people all the time, sometimes for very important cases. Take, for example, pregnancy tests. What level of false negatives and false positives would be acceptable in such a test. You can try to explain it all you want in the instruction booklet, but you know that people who are worried and hiding the test, some who may have only a high school education, will not read it. How exact should the tests be to responsibly put them out for the public?
- Castro Retires
Today, Fidel Castro announced his retirement. After fifty years leading Cuba, he says that he no longer has the mobility and drive needed to continue the revolution and while this is not his farewell, he has decided to retire. So, the obvious question...
- Pardon My Cynicism
Mad Cow disease is one of TheWife's soapbox issues, so this wasn't news to me, but it is absolutely stunning. A small cattle ranch, Creek Stone Farms, wants to test all of its cows for Mad Cow disease and is being prevented by the government....
- Philosophy Of Science At The Supreme Court
It's not often that philosophers of science get to talk about cases before the Supreme Court, but the high court just heard arguments concerning the scope of patents and medical discoveries that raises interesting questions about the nature of scientific...
- Emergency Alert System (eas)...november 9th, 2011
At the Federal Communications Commission's June 9, 2011 Agenda meeting, Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau Chief Jamie Barnett, joined by representatives from FEMA and the National Weather Service, announced that the first nationwide test...
- Bioethics And Human Papillomavirus Vaccination
"Human Papillomavirus Vaccination — Reasons for Caution" by Charlotte J. Haug, M.D., Ph.D. August 21st, 2008 The New England Journal of Medicine Despite great expectations and promising results of clinical trials, we still lack sufficient evidence...
Philosophy
Imperfect Evidence and Information for the Public
Dr. Richard Ablin, the medical researcher who discovered the prostate specific antigen in 1970, wrote an op/ed in The New York Times a couple weeks ago in which he argues that we are wating a tremendous amount of money on PSA tests for men. There is a slight correlation between elevated PSA levels and prostate cancer, but some cases of the deadly form do not raise the PSA number. More prevalent is the false positive, the case in which the PSA number goes up for a reason other than cancer. Dr. Ablin writes,
"the test is hardly more effective than a coin toss. As I've been trying to make clear for many years now, P.S.A. testing can't detect prostate cancer and, more important, it can't distinguish between the two types of prostate cancer -- the one that will kill you and the one that won't."My own doctor says that she attaches little importance to the PSA number and only considers it as evidence in context with other factors and tests (As my buddy Todd says, "They call it a digital exam, but it sure feels like analog to me").
But my doctor is a trained professional who thinks deeply about what one can and cannot infer from imperfect evidence, what about those who are not so trained? We give imperfect evidence to people all the time, sometimes for very important cases. Take, for example, pregnancy tests. What level of false negatives and false positives would be acceptable in such a test. You can try to explain it all you want in the instruction booklet, but you know that people who are worried and hiding the test, some who may have only a high school education, will not read it. How exact should the tests be to responsibly put them out for the public?
- Castro Retires
Today, Fidel Castro announced his retirement. After fifty years leading Cuba, he says that he no longer has the mobility and drive needed to continue the revolution and while this is not his farewell, he has decided to retire. So, the obvious question...
- Pardon My Cynicism
Mad Cow disease is one of TheWife's soapbox issues, so this wasn't news to me, but it is absolutely stunning. A small cattle ranch, Creek Stone Farms, wants to test all of its cows for Mad Cow disease and is being prevented by the government....
- Philosophy Of Science At The Supreme Court
It's not often that philosophers of science get to talk about cases before the Supreme Court, but the high court just heard arguments concerning the scope of patents and medical discoveries that raises interesting questions about the nature of scientific...
- Emergency Alert System (eas)...november 9th, 2011
At the Federal Communications Commission's June 9, 2011 Agenda meeting, Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau Chief Jamie Barnett, joined by representatives from FEMA and the National Weather Service, announced that the first nationwide test...
- Bioethics And Human Papillomavirus Vaccination
"Human Papillomavirus Vaccination — Reasons for Caution" by Charlotte J. Haug, M.D., Ph.D. August 21st, 2008 The New England Journal of Medicine Despite great expectations and promising results of clinical trials, we still lack sufficient evidence...