Health screening package - too commercialised or necessary?

As a doctor, many ask me whether is it necessary to do annual health screen. The answer is definitely yes because as we age, many diseases tends to creep silently and with little or no warnings at all. But we don't screen for everything under the sun.

A good screening test has the following characteristics

1. Easy to perform
2. Not invasive
3. Minimal side effects
4. Accurate
5. Early diagnosis means better cure rate and quality of life
6. Cost effective

I'll be discussing about  health screening that's already well established in adults because a less accurate test can cause unnecessary over testing and anxiety. One should start getting screened at 45 years old.

• Blood pressure 
• Blood Cholesterol level
• Blood Sugar level to detect diabetes 
• Faecal occult blood testing for colon cancer at 50 years old
• Blood HIV test

For women,

• Bone mineral density scan at 65 years of age to detect osteoporosis
• Mammogram to detect early breast cancer
• Pap smear to detect cervical cancer

For men,
Blood PSA level is controversial and not recommended at the moment.

Read this article on webMD for comprehensive understanding.