Too Much Medicine? The Problem of Overtreatment

RADIO 4, 9.00PM

Are we much healthier than we think we are? Or are we taking more medication than necessary? Dr Margaret Mccartney explores the surprising problem with overscreening, which can lead to us finding out we have horrible diseases we had no idea about, but for which diagnosis has no impact on death rates. This programme asks if ignorance might sometimes be bliss when it comes to diagnosis, suggesting – reassuringly – that if we feel healthy, than we probably are.