Men here being 'let down' by lack of prostate cancer test
Men in Northern Ireland are being "let down'' by a lack of up-to-date screening for prostate cancer, a charity has warned.
A Freedom of Information request from Prostate Cancer UK has found that large parts of Northern Ireland still don’t have access to the latest diagnostic scans for prostate cancer.
Eighteen months after the PROMIS trial first proved multiparametric MRI (mpMRI) before a biopsy could radically increase accuracy of prostate cancer diagnosis, Northern Ireland is lagging behind much of the UK in terms of making this breakthrough diagnostic available, putting Northern Irish men at a disadvantage.
Only 2 out of 5 (40%) of the Northern Ireland health boards are offering mpMRI before biopsy and none of those are providing to a high enough standard to rule men out of biopsy altogether.
Although this represents a little improvement since the Boards last responded to an FOI on this in Autumn 2016, this compares poorly to the UK as a whole where 87% of areas are providing mpMRI before biopsy and 56% to a high standard.
The charity warns without urgent action standards of diagnosis for men in Northern Ireland will continue to fall behind the rest of the UK.
Prostate Cancer UK is calling on the Health and Social Care Board to take action to end this variation in access by prioritising additional resources needed for all men with suspected prostate cancer to access an mpMRI scan before a biopsy.
Heather Blake, Director of Support and Influencing at Prostate Cancer UK said:
“It is appalling that men in Northern Ireland should be denied the more accurate prostate cancer diagnosis that is becoming increasingly available to men in other parts of the UK. The evidence in support of mpMRI before biopsy is overwhelming - it is the biggest breakthrough in prostate cancer diagnosis for decades.
"This inequality in access cannot be allowed to continue.
“We want Northern Ireland to make pre-biopsy mpMRI available to a high standard for all men who could benefit from it. Prostate Cancer UK is ready and willing to provide support and insight to help make this happen. Urgent action is needed so that men in Northern Ireland no longer miss out.
“Northern Ireland is the only nation in the UK without a cancer strategy. Prostate Cancer UK believes that the development of a strategy is long overdue in which to address variation in diagnosis, treatment and support for people with cancer. The inequality of access to mpMRI before biopsy for men in Northern Ireland once again brings into focus the need for such a strategy in order to help drive the implementation of new developments such as this.”