Deapen Dennis
Los Angeles Cancer Surveillance Program, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
Cancer Causes Control. 2006 Jun;17(5):633-7. doi: 10.1007/s10552-006-0002-1.
Rapid advances in informatics and communication technologies are greatly expanding the capacity for information capture and transportation. While these tools can be used for great good, they also offer new opportunities for those who seek to obtain and use information for improper purposes. While issues related to identity theft for financial gain garner the most attention, protection of privacy in public health endeavors such as cancer surveillance is also a significant concern. Some efforts to protect health-related information have had unintended consequences detrimental to health research and public health practice. Achieving a proper balance between measures to protect privacy and the ability to guard and improve public health requires careful consideration and development of appropriate policies, regulations and use of technology.
信息学和通信技术的飞速发展极大地扩展了信息获取和传输的能力。虽然这些工具可以带来诸多益处，但它们也为那些试图获取和不当使用信息的人提供了新的机会。虽然与以获取经济利益为目的的身份盗窃相关的问题最受关注，但在癌症监测等公共卫生工作中保护隐私也是一个重大问题。一些保护健康相关信息的努力产生了对健康研究和公共卫生实践不利的意外后果。要在保护隐私的措施与保障和改善公众健康的能力之间实现适当平衡，需要仔细考虑并制定适当的政策、法规以及技术应用。
