It included some of the best known examples, such as too much imaging for back pain and repeating colonoscopies too frequently.

NPR: Doc Groups Issue List Of Overused Tests, Therapies

The list includes electrocardiograms for asymptomatic patients, imaging tests for routine back pain, and Pap smears for women younger than 21 years old.

CNN: Doctors and patients should talk more, test less

Tests to track down the pain's source, such as high-tech imaging, are costly and of questionable benefit.

CNN: Plagued by chronic pain? Treatment teams can help

However, most kidney tumors these days are found not because they cause symptoms, but are spotted by accident when people are having an X-ray or other imaging test for something else, like back trouble or chest pain.

WSJ: Study questions kidney cancer treatment in elderly