The Power of Better Diagnostics
From Ars Technica, a look at the real might of improved diagnosics - often the first impact of new technologies. Don't overlook the power of identifying age-related disease early: it may not be as flashy as late-stage cures, but it's impressively effective for many conditions. "They followed over 30,000 individuals at-risk for lung cancer over a dozen years via annual rapid CT screenings. Of the 412 people who developed lung cancer over that time, the screening procedure allowed 88 percent of those cases to be caught at the earliest stage. Overall, the survival rate was over 80 percent in the participants who were caught early, but for those in this group who opted for surgical removal within a month of the diagnosis, the estimated 10 year survival rate is a staggering 92 percent. The eight patients who opted not to be treated were all dead by the end of the study. ... lung cancer [kills] an estimated 160,000 people annually in the US alone, where about 95 percent of those diagnosed with the disease currently die of it."
Link: http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20061026-8081.html