Wiltshire men urged to act on prostate cancer as new screening trials launched
Prostate Cancer affects 1 in 8 men
Prostate Cancer UK has revealed it's trialling a new screening test to diagnose men with the disease more safely and accurately, in the hopes of double the number of lives saved.
Prostate Cancer affects one in eight men, with an average of more than 52,000 men diagnosed with the disease every year - making it the most common form of cancer WITHOUT a screening programme in the UK.
Instead, men need to come forward themselves and request a test.
But now, through the charity's trial programme, TRANSFORM, multiple methods of screening will be tested to compare with current processes, in the hopes of finding the safest and most accurate way to screen men for the disease.
Previous trials using PSA and biopsy to screen for prostate cancer have shown it is possible to prevent 8% to 20% of prostate cancer deaths depending on how regularly men are screened.
However, the new £42 million trial aims to refine the process and could more than double this impact and reduce prostate cancer deaths by up to 40%.
There are more than 12,000 deaths due to prostate cancer in the UK each year, meaning better screening could save thousands of lives both here and abroad.
Wiltshire survivor urges men to act
Professor Mark Everard is a prostate cancer survivor from Wiltshire and has welcomed the new trials.
"I'm massively pleased to see screening improved for prostate cancer, simply because I'm alive, and that was not a given when I was diagnosed," he said.
Professor Everard was prompted into asking for a test after two of his friends were diagnosed with the disease - despite having had no symptoms.
"The bombs fell closely," he said, adding: "I thought, 'wow, I've been so complacent. I shall go and ask for a test'."
Professor Everard stressed the importance of a more precise diagnosis but also of catching the illness early.
"You've got it early," he said, adding "That really matters. I have friends who have found that they have an issue really a little bit too late to do much about it."
He's urging men to be proactive and not to wait for symptoms as it might be too late by then.
"If I'd have waited for symptoms, then there's a good chance that it might already have been too late to arrest the progression. If you have concerns, but above all, if you have symptoms, act on it now."