Scrapping plans for nationwide prostate tests ‘will cost lives’,
Prostate cancer survivors and campaigners have urged the Government not to scrap plans for a life-saving national screening programme.
Prostate cancer is the last major cancer without such a countrywide programme and it kills more than 12,000 men every year.
But reports emerged last week the UK National Screening Committee will advise the Government to dismiss proposals to offer men most at risk of the disease a routine NHS test due to cost-effectiveness concerns.
It comes ahead of a report tomorrow from Prostate Cancer Research which will show that screening could be rolled out across the UK without overwhelming the NHS.
The report will be given to the Government and the UKNSC ahead of the decision on the matter later this year.
Financial adviser Bruce Hobley, 71, who is undergoing cancer treatment, said there was an obvious need for screening. He added: ‘I know plenty of survivors and some of them would not still be here if they had not had an early screening.
‘Not only does it result in many men being cured and saving lives, but also, if it’s caught at a later stage, then the impact on the NHS is going to be far greater. So if the idea is to save funds it doesn’t pass that test either.’
Rupert Crowfoot, 57, chief executive of the chain Six Physiotherapy, has a terminal prostate cancer diagnosis after late detection of the disease. He said: ‘I have no doubt screening would have saved my life, and I know many men who’d say the same.’
He added: ‘We need the Government to step up and support an early detection programme. Every day that passes without these changes, more men’s lives are lost.’
Former prime minister Rishi Sunak said the evidence is clear a targeted programme would save lives.
He added: ‘Now is the time to implement a targeted screening programme for the most common cancer among British men.’
Prostate Cancer UK’s chief Laura Kerby said: ‘We know a safe and effective screening programme will save thousands of men’s lives.’
It comes as the National Prostate Cancer Audit found men from the wealthiest parts of England are twice as likely to receive a diagnosis as those from the poorest.
One in four men diagnosed in 2022 lived in the top fifth most affluent areas, while 13 per cent were in the poorest fifth.
The cancer, which affects 56,000 men each year, can be treatable if caught early. But if not detected until in an advanced stage, half of patients die within five years.
Former US President Joe Biden, 82, will undergo five weeks of radiotherapy to treat an aggressive form of the cancer that has spread to his bones.
The Mail campaign calling for a national screening programme has won widespread backing, including from Olympic cyclist Sir Chris Hoy and Sir Stephen Fry.
