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Australia

"New test to detect asbestos exposure"

Source: Sky News

Published: 03 Aug 2012

Category: Diagnostic Test

Rating: (3½ stars)

Keywords: mesothelioma breathe test asbestos

what they said (Hover the mouse cursor over underlined words for more info)

A potentially life-saving test has been developed to detect malignant mesothelioma in its early stages.

The original article can be found at: http://www.skynews.com.au/health/article.aspx?id=779126

how did it rate? (more information)

Criteria	Rating
Total Score	5 of 8
Availability of Test	Satisfactory (?)
Novelty of Test	Satisfactory (?)
Diagnostic Options	Satisfactory (?)
Disease Mongering	Satisfactory (?)
Evidence	Satisfactory (?)
Quantification of diagnostic accuracy and benefits	Not Satisfactory (?)
Potential harms of Testing	Not Satisfactory (?)
Costs of Testing	Not Applicable
Sources of Information	Not Satisfactory (?)
Relies on Press Release	Not Applicable

what we said (Hover the mouse cursor over underlined words for more info)

There is a significant error in the headline of this story, the research is not about a test which detects asbestos exposure. It's whether people have a malignant or benign asbestos related disease: two very different things.

While the trial is in its early stages, it would be interesting to know more about the research findings so far. The claim for 88% accuracy does not tell us if the mistakes were in over diagnosis or under diagnosis - that is, were 12% of people falsely diagnosed with the fatal disease or were 12% of diagnoses missed?

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