Overdiagnosis and Overtreatment of Radiation-Related Malignancy in Belarus, Kazakhstan and Ukraine

What is it about?

Among factors contributing to the use of invasive procedures with questionable indications have been the partial isolation from the international scientific community, insufficient consideration of the principles of professional autonomy, informed consent and scientific polemics, as well as paternalistic attitude to patients. Most importantly, the human factor has not sufficiently changed since the Soviet time. The ethical and legal basis of medical practice and research has not been sufficiently known and observed in some post-Soviet countries. Today, the growing economy enables the acquisition of modern equipment; and medical research is on the increase. Under these circumstances, the purpose of this commentary was to remind us that, performing surgical or other invasive procedures, the risk-to-benefit ratio must be kept as low as possible.

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