Charity wants testing of men at high risk of prostate cance

Screening men born with a high risk of developing prostate cancer, once they reach the age of 45, makes financial sense, a cancer charity says.

But Prostate Cancer Research also acknowledges more accurate tests would be needed to justify screening all men.

There is no prostate-cancer screening programme in the UK, unlike those for breast, bowel and cervical cancer.

Instead, the onus is on men to request a blood test from their GP once they are over 50.

Following his recent terminal cancer diagnosis, Olympic cyclist Sir Chris Hoy has called for more, younger men to be tested – including those with a family history of the disease – and the government has asked the NHS to examine the evidence again.

Oliver Kemp, head of the charity Prostate Cancer Research, said the current system is not working.

He told the BBC’s Today Programme: “Not everyone is even aware that they have a prostate, never mind that they are at higher risk.

“Not as many people are turning up to their doctors as they should be.”

More men dying

The debate around prostate screening revolves around an imperfect test and the trade-off between finding some men’s aggressive cancers earlier and the harms of diagnosing and treating slow-growing tumours that would never have affected a man’s health or lifespan.

The case for and against is constantly reviewed in the UK, with the most recent report from the National Screening Committee, in 2020, saying the harms were too great.

Further updates are expected this year.

Despite more men dying from prostate cancer than women from breast cancer, there is no reliable test for the disease.

The blood test men over 50 can request from their GP measures prostate-specific antigen (PSA), released by the prostate, a small gland located below the bladder involved in the production of semen.

But PSA levels can be high for a variety of reasons – including an enlarged prostate, inflammation or infection, recent vigorous exercise or sex – or remain normal despite cancer.