Prostate cancer trial shown to 'reduce the number of deaths' - as charity calls for change

Men at higher risk of prostate cancer should get a test from their GP – even if they don’t have any symptoms of the disease, a charity has said.

The recommendation is based on two trials carried out by Prostate Cancer UK, which showed that tests measuring prostate-specific antigen (PSA) levels “reduce the number of men who die” from the disease – despite having previously been considered unreliable. .

Doctors currently offer PSA testing to men with symptoms of prostate cancer, but may not proactively offer it to high-risk men without symptoms, such as men over 50, black men, and men with a family history of the disease. .

This helps prevent cancer-free patients from undergoing unnecessary tests and treatments, such as invasive biopsies.

The NHS states that PSA levels can be raised by other non-cancer conditions, but doctors cannot tell from the test whether cancer is the cause or not.

But Dr Matthew Hobbs, director of research at Prostate Cancer UK, said current guidelines are “undoubtedly driving late diagnosis” and causing “huge inequality across the UK”.

“Historically, the evidence that PSA tests saved lives was weak and there was strong evidence that the tests caused harm,” said Dr. Hobbs.

“Now the situation has changed; we have strong evidence from two separate trials that PSA testing reduces the number of men who die from prostate cancer.”

Trials carried out by the charity found that the potential harm caused by the disease was reduced by 79% if men had a PSA test and a pre-biopsy MRI – compared to those who did not have an MRI.

Prostate Cancer UK is now calling for NHS guidelines to “catch up with modern evidence”.

More than 52,000 people are diagnosed with prostate cancer every year, making it the most common cancer affecting men.

Symptoms may include difficulty urinating or an increased need to urinate, as well as blood in the urine or semen.

Clive Efford, Labor MP for Eltham and Chislehurst, was diagnosed with prostate cancer in November 2023 and said his doctors were “dismissive” when he asked for a test, despite the disease running in his family.

He said the new report “makes it clear that this reluctance from my doctors was unfounded and outdated” and that “there is no excuse for the guidelines not to change.”

Several high-profile celebrities have spoken out about the need for regular testing.

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Sir Rod Stewart revealed in 2019 that he had been undergoing treatment for prostate cancer for three years and said the disease was only detected early when he had regular scans.

Referrals for prostate cancer also increased after the death of BBC presenter Bill Turnbull in 2022 and after the comedian and former QI presenter Stephen Fry revealed his prostate cancer diagnosis in 2018.

An NHS spokesperson said it is committed to using proven and effective cancer screening techniques that can benefit patients and will work with the government to approve updates to the UK screening guidance.

A spokesperson for the Department of Health and Social Care said it is investing £16 million to find “new ways to detect prostate cancer in men as early as possible, giving them the best chance of survival”.