When should clinicians screen for hidden medical issues? And when should they leave well alone?

Niall and Miriam talk to Dr Margaret McCartney, general practitioner, freelance writer, broadcaster and lecturer, about the trade-offs and controversies involved in public - and privately provided - health screening programmes.

The Lancet Voice is part of the Lancet Group podcast offering.

Editorial team: Niall Boyce, Miriam Sabin, Jessamy Bagenal, Richard Horton, and Gavin Cleaver

Podcast editing: Matteo Simonetti

Visit https://www.thelancet.com/multimedia to learn more about our multimedia offering.

Find the best science for better lives at thelancet.com Follow us today at... https://thelancet.bsky.social/ https://instagram.com/thelancetgroup https://facebook.com/thelancetmedicaljournal https://linkedIn.com/company/the-lancet https://youtube.com/thelancettv

This episode of The Lancet Voice sets the stage for the arrival of one of the most influential figures in the history of public health, John Snow and explains how he revolutionised modern epidemiology during a devastating wave of cholera in London's Soho and how cholera is still a scourge today in many countries requiring a multisectoral response.

Click here to read the full articles:

https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(13)60830-2/fulltext

https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140673613608296/fulltext

https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(13)60766-7/abstract

https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(21)02005-5/fulltext

https://johnsnowsociety.org/

Lecture link:

Tuesday 17 November 2026 - Pumphandle Lecture 2026: From outbreaks to endgame, the fight to end polio with Dr Hamid Jafari

https://www.lshtm.ac.uk/newsevents/events/outbreaks-endgame-fight-end-polio-dr-hamid-jafari

The Lancet Voice is part of the Lancet Group podcast offering.

Editorial team: Niall Boyce, Miriam Sabin, Jessamy Bagenal, Richard Horton, and Gavin Cleaver

Podcast editing: Matteo Simonetti

Visit https://www.thelancet.com/multimedia to learn more about our multimedia offering.

Find the best science for better lives at thelancet.com Follow us today at... https://thelancet.bsky.social/ https://instagram.com/thelancetgroup https://facebook.com/thelancetmedicaljournal https://linkedIn.com/company/the-lancet https://youtube.com/thelancettv

What's the truth behind media reports of people experiencing "AI psychosis" after interacting with chatbots? Editors Niall Boyce and Miriam Sabin are joined by psychiatrist Matthew Nour of Oxford University and Microsoft AI to separate fact from fiction, and understand more about the ways in which artificial intelligence might affect human mental health.

The Lancet Voice is part of the Lancet Group podcast offering.

Editorial team: Niall Boyce, Miriam Sabin, Jessamy Bagenal, Richard Horton, and Gavin Cleaver

Podcast editing: Matteo Simonetti

Visit https://www.thelancet.com/multimedia to learn more about our multimedia offering.

Find the best science for better lives at thelancet.com Follow us today at... https://thelancet.bsky.social/ https://instagram.com/thelancetgroup https://facebook.com/thelancetmedicaljournal https://linkedIn.com/company/the-lancet https://youtube.com/thelancettv