Noncancer-Related Mortality in Randomized Clinical Trials

Are there differences in noncancer-related mortality between the screening and control arms of randomized clinical trials?In this meta-analysis of 17 randomized clinical trials including 1 305 924 participants, allocation to cancer screening was not associated with an increase in noncancer-related mortality. The overall increase in off-target mortality was 0.2%, but the difference was not statistically significant.These findings highlight the importance of assessing targeted and off-target mortality separately rather than relying solely on all-cause mortality.

Corresponding Authors: Jiayao Lei, PhD, Karolinska Institutet, Nobels väg 12A, Solna 17177, Sweden (jiayao.lei@ki.se), and Peter Sasieni, PhD, Centre for Cancer Screening, Prevention and Early Diagnosis, Wolfson Institute of Population Health, Queen Mary University of London, Charterhouse Sq, London EC1M 6BQ, United Kingdom (p.sasieni@qmul.ac.uk).

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