PRINCETON, N.J., Dec. 1 (UPI) -- Cancer screening is done the right amount of time, 58 percent of U.S. adults say, while 31 percent say it is not done frequently enough, a survey indicates.
A Gallup Poll of 1,012 adults conducted Nov. 3-6 found 7 percent of those asked say cancer tests are conducted too frequently.
The perception that cancer screening tests are not conducted frequently enough declines with age, from 52 percent among 18- to 29-year-olds to 10 percent among those age 65 and older, the survey said.
Older Americans' higher level of belief that cancer screening tests are done with about the right amount of frequency could reflect the almost certain likelihood that the older group has been exposed more often to cancer screening tests than those who are younger, Gallup officials said.
Those with college educations may be more likely than the less well-educated to have read or heard news of the recent controversies about the efficacy of cancer screening. Studies show the benefits of such tests, as measured by the ultimate goal of decreased cancer deaths, but the benefits may not always outweigh the impact of false positives, repeated invasive tests, injurious procedures and negative side effects, Gallup officials said.
Overall, the margin of error was 4 percentage points.
