Do health professionals know about overdiagnosis in screening, and how are they dealing with it? A mixed-methods systematic scoping review.

ABSTRACT:

Introduction

Medical screening is a major driver of overdiagnosis, which should be considered when making an informed screening decision. Health professionals (HPs) often initiate screening and are therefore responsible for informing eligible screening participants about the benefits and harms of screening. However, little is known about HPs' knowledge of overdiagnosis and whether they are prepared to inform screening candidates about this risk and enable people to make an informed screening decision.

Methods

This is a systematic review of studies examining HPs' knowledge and perception of overdiagnosis, whether it affects their position on offering screening, and their willingness to inform screening candidates about overdiagnosis. We conducted systematic searches in MEDLIN

SUBMITTER: Piessens V 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11790174 | biostudies-literature | 2025

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature