Why More Testing Does Not Always Mean Better Care
Why this matters
When more testing seems reassuring, excessive testing can actually create anxiety, trigger unnecessary treatments, and paradoxically harm health. What matters is whether a test is asking the right question at the right time, and whether the result will actually change what happens next.
The problems with over testing
False positives and incidental findings. Every test carries a small chance of returning an abnormal result that isn’t clinically significant. The more tests carried out, the higher the probability of finding something that looks concerning but is actually normal variation. Testing 20 different markers gives a healthy person roughly a 64% chance of at least one abnormal result by pure chance. These findings then trigger further testing and sometimes invasive procedures for something that would never have caused harm.
Overdiagnosis and unnecessary treatment. Finding a disease that would never cause symptoms leads to treatment carrying risks without benefit.
Anxiety and financial cost. Frequent testing increases anxiety rather than reducing it. Reassuring results provide temporary relief, but anxiety returns and prompts more testing, creating a cycle that’s difficult to break. Private testing is also expensive, and that money could go towards things that provide genuine benefits.
When testing genuinely helps
Testing is valuable when there’s a clear clinical question, when the result will change what happens next, and when the benefits outweigh the risks of finding something incidental. Evidence-based monitoring protocols exist precisely for this reason.
What you could do
Understanding the purpose behind each test makes it easier to trust the process rather than add to it out of anxiety.
- Before requesting or agreeing to additional testing, ask whether the result would change anything. If the answer is no or unclear, the test may not be necessary
- Trust evidence-based monitoring schedules rather than seeking tests more frequently than recommended. Guidelines define appropriate intervals for good reasons
- If anxiety is driving the desire to test more, addressing the anxiety directly is more effective and avoids the reinforcement cycle
- If symptoms persist despite reassuring tests, or if a diagnosis remains unclear and affects management, further testing is genuinely justified. This is different from reassurance-seeking
Purposeful, well-timed testing supports good care. Testing driven by anxiety or the hope that more information will always help doesn’t.
This article is for general information purposes only and doesn’t constitute legal, financial or benefits advice. For advice specific to your situation, please speak to a qualified professional or contact an organisation such as Citizens Advice, who may be able to assist you further.
References:
‘Preventing overdiagnosis: how to stop harming the healthy’ (2012) https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.e3502
‘Psychological Treatment of Health Anxiety and Hypochondriasis: A Biopsychosocial Approach’ (2008) https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2008-10831-000
‘The cascade effect in the clinical care of patients’ (1986) https://doi.org/10.1056/NEJM198602203140809