Latest news with #ProstateCancerResearch
Telegraph
2 days ago
- Health
- Telegraph
Prostate cancer patients to be fast-tracked on to drug trials
Men with prostate cancer could get access to life-saving trials within hours, under a programme to speed up access to treatment. Half a million cancer patients and survivors will be eligible to sign up for the platform, backed by the NHS, which links patient feedback with medical records in real time. Wes Streeting said the programme was part of a 'medical revolution' that would match men up to trials in a matter of hours, allowing more rapid treatment. He told The Telegraph: 'I know from my own treatment that once the cancer clock starts ticking, every minute matters. This new programme will match men up to trials in hours rather than weeks, giving patients rapid access to new treatments. 'By teaming up the NHS with our country's leading life sciences sector, and harnessing our health and care data, we can put our health service at the forefront of the medical revolution and transform care for patients.' The Health Secretary said the scheme would use cutting-edge technology 'to personalise medicine, catch sickness sooner, treat it faster and save lives'. The Prostate Progress platform, developed by the charity Prostate Cancer Research, will securely connect outcomes reported by individual patients, such as symptoms, side effects and quality of life, with clinical NHS data for the first time. Experts say that as well as ensuring faster access to trials, the programme will help spot side effects, create more personalised medicine and mean fewer men dying from the disease. NHS England has selected it as the first project for a national research programme, meaning it could become the model for other types of diseases. Prostate cancer is the most common cancer in men with 55,000 diagnoses and 12,000 deaths annually. The platform will create a large, anonymous pool of real-world information for researchers and clinicians, meaning men can be recruited far more quickly for new trials. The Telegraph is campaigning for the introduction of targeted screening, so those most at risk, such as black men and those with a family history of disease, are offered PSA tests. The new platform will enable researchers to track the rollout of targeted screening, if it gets the green light, to assess its impact in detail. So far, about 4,000 men with prostate cancer have been signed up to the pilot programme, across the North West, West Midlands and London, with a target to enroll 40,000 men in the next year, making it the largest platform of its kind. The programme has been backed by NHS England and will be scaled up across England over the next year, with 9 out of 11 areas already signed up. Any prostate cancer patient or survivor can now join the patient portal, allowing them to apply for clinical trials and see how their medical data compare with national trends. The link-up of the programme with NHS data will enable researchers to go further, to unlock a wealth of information about how patients respond to different treatments. In the next phase, starting this autumn, the platform will be linked to bio-banked tissue samples, unlocking the potential for personalised medicine, and to AI-enabled tools which can analyse data from images, genomic data, wearable technology and hospital correspondence. The programme also aims to expose inequalities in care, to improve access for all age groups, ethnic groups and areas. Oliver Kemp, chief executive of Prostate Cancer Research, said: 'With Prostate Progress we're turning the UK's unparalleled health data into a real-time engine for research and care. 'For the first time, men's own reports of how prostate cancer affects their daily lives are being securely linked to their NHS records, creating a single, anonymised resource. 'This can match patients to clinical trials in a matter of hours or days instead of weeks or months. It can also help to expose and fix the inequalities that still cost far too many lives, and give scientists the evidence they need to develop kinder, more precise treatments. 'Prostate Progress shows what's possible when patients, the NHS and charities pool their strengths: together, we can stop needless delays and give every man the best chance of a longer, healthier life.' Prof Peter Johnson, NHS national clinical director for cancer, said: 'This unique programme will have patients at its heart, enabling faster access to trials and combining clinical data with patients' real-life experiences to help redefine how we treat prostate cancer – a really exciting development. 'Prostate Progress is the first of a new series of major projects to support innovative and secure uses of health data to help improve care and save lives.'
Telegraph
30-07-2025
- Health
- Telegraph
Prostate cancer screening will save lives and money
The Telegraph's prostate cancer campaign has got off to a flying start. But some are sceptical about a targeted screening programme to ensure that this 'invisible killer' is detected as early as possible. Today we report that new research has shown that the benefits of targeted screening for the disease outweigh the potential risks by seven to one. Offering PSA blood tests to men aged 45 to 70 with a family history of prostate cancer gave these patients seven 'healthy years' for every one lost. Black men, at higher risk of developing this cancer, benefited from being offered the tests every five years. According to Prostate Cancer Research, separate modelling shows that a targeted screening programme of all men at higher risk, together with better diagnostics, would save 40 per cent of the annual toll of 12,000 deaths. So the Telegraph campaign could save 4,800 lives every year. What about the cost? In the 45-70 age range, some 650,000 men have a close relative who has suffered from prostate cancer, while 370,000 are black. Hence a programme aimed at these groups would offer tests to more than a million men. This is a much smaller number than the 6.5 million women who are currently eligible for breast cancer screening. While women require mammograms every three years, men would be tested only every five years. So a targeted prostate cancer screening programme should be much cheaper than the current NHS Breast Cancer Screening Programme, which costs just under £100 million annually. Indeed, such programmes save money by reducing the need for hospital care. For the 55,000 men who are diagnosed with prostate cancer every year, screening cannot come soon enough.
Yahoo
26-07-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
‘Too many men are dying from prostate cancer needlessly – earlier detection can save lives'
David James is director of patient projects and influencing at Prostate Cancer Research, a leading British charity advancing prostate cancer treatment Prostate cancer is the most common cancer currently affecting men in the UK. Last year, more than 55,000 men were diagnosed in England (where we have the most recent data). It's also the second most common cause of death by cancer, with more than 12,000 men in the UK dying from the disease every year. Sadly, projections suggest this figure will only increase during the next 15 years. My motivation for getting involved in this area is actually three-fold. At a very young age, my mother died of brain cancer. I saw the impact of that being caught late and the implications for my life and our family's life. I have an uncle who developed prostate cancer (he's fine now) and also my father was recently diagnosed, quite early, so it's being monitored. Currently, we have the Informed Choice system, which, technically, is the Prostate Cancer Risk Management Programme. What that means is, if you have no symptoms, but are over the age of 50, you can request a PSA blood test from your GP (this measures a substance that occurs naturally in the prostate – a high score can be an indicator of cancer but can also be unrelated). Younger men should be able request a test if they are in a high-risk category, too. You are supposed to be given the test once you have been counselled about the pros and cons. The problem with this approach is really the guidance, which is pretty poorly understood both by members of the public and clinicians. The guidance leads to huge inequalities in the system. There are examples of men being turned away time and time again, sometimes men with cancer that could have been caught early. Why are men not getting tested? I was speaking to a man in his late 40s the other day. His name is Mark, he has three kids and has been diagnosed at an advanced stage. He'd been trying to get a test and was turned away. This is because of the confusion around these guidelines. Although he was under 50, he was in a high-risk group because he has a family history of the disease. If members of your family have had prostate cancer, you are high risk. If you are black you are about twice as likely to have the illness. There are also certain gene mutations that increase risk. We have polled GPs, and many don't know about the higher-risk categories, so there is an inconsistency in the way the guidelines are being implemented. Doctors are supposed to counsel patients about potential harms and benefits of different treatments and the limitations of the PSA blood test. Like any other health problem, it should be up to the individual to make an informed choice – that's what the system is designed for. But a GP may not be up to date with the latest diagnostic and treatment techniques or have some historical objection to screening. If a man has plucked up the courage to ask his GP for a test and is told to go away, that undermines their attempts to be proactive about their health. Prostate cancer in its early stages is usually symptomless. If we don't want to see people dying from late-stage disease, the key is to catch it before symptoms appear. People who are more affluent and health-educated will actively seek out the test and be persistent until they get it because they know their rights (or they have already tested positive privately). Men from areas of socio-economic deprivation are 29 per cent more likely to be diagnosed with late-stage, incurable prostate cancer. Being invited for a test as part of a screening programme is quite different to going along and asking for one yourself. We've spoken to a lot of people. I think receiving an official letter from the NHS, or your doctor saying this is a risk we want to keep an eye on will make you feel emboldened to go. Having something official drop through your letterbox takes away the fear of needlessly troubling a busy GP, for example. Since 2019, UK guidance has been that if a patient has a raised PSA level, then he should go for an MRI scan. And that MRI scan has been a massive game changer, because the MRI is really good at filtering out people who don't have the illness. This avoids sending patients for unnecessary biopsies. No test is perfect, though. No test is accurate at picking up everyone who has the disease, but it is certainly better than not doing anything and we think the evidence shows significant reduction in harm and the benefits of screening. Next-generation testing There has been a fear of over-treatment as screening exposes people with low-risk cancers. We now see that more than 90 per cent of those people are going onto active surveillance, where they are being given a follow-up PSA and MRI every six to 12 months. If you have a slow-growing cancer, you could well live out your life healthily with no problematic symptoms and die in your sleep of old age. But if it does start to grow and become problematic, then you're in the system. We can catch it early and treat it before it spreads and becomes incurable. Our research showed that screening people in high-risk groups is cost-effective. Treating advanced cancer is 10 times more costly than treating it at stage one. We're calling for a targeted prostate cancer screening programme for high-risk groups. The NHS cost of a PSA test is around £33, so we could implement this fairly quickly and start catching prostate cancer earlier in these groups – then, for the general population of men over 50, let's invest in some real-world evidence gathering. We should carry out pilots on the next generation of tests. When we're confident the new tests are effective, we can roll out universal testing to all men over 50. Too many men are dying from a disease needlessly when we know that testing and earlier detection can save lives. The NHS is working with the target of catching 75 per cent of all cancers early. At the moment, only about half of prostate cancers are diagnosed at stages one and two. So, if the NHS is to meet its target, given how significant prostate cancer is, that target is going to be impossible to reach unless we break the back of late diagnosis. The decision is being reviewed by the Government's screening committee right now and they are due to report back this year. This is something that's also being looked at in Europe and the US. The world is watching us right now. I'm really hopeful the UK can be a leader. As told to Phil Hilton Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. 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Telegraph
13-06-2025
- Health
- Telegraph
Rishi Sunak calls for national prostate cancer screening
Prostate cancer screening must be rolled out nationally, Rishi Sunak has urged. In his first major intervention since standing down as prime minister, Mr Sunak calls for targeted screening, so those with higher risk of the disease such as those with a family history of it undergo checks. The UK National Screening Committee (UK NSC) is currently considering whether to roll out screening. Experts believe there is a growing case for targeted screening, meaning that PSA blood tests would be offered to those at heightened risk of the disease. Writing for The Telegraph, Mr Sunak urges the UK NSC to make the leap – and to do so 'without delay'. In the meantime, he urges all men to use Father's Day this Sunday as an opportunity to talk to their fathers about their health. The MP, who recently became an ambassador for charity Prostate Cancer Research, writes: 'On Father's Day, many of us will call our dads for a chat. We'll discuss many things: the news, sport, the family. But few of us will touch on our health. 'For we men aren't very good at addressing that: I am the son of a GP but even me and my dad don't talk enough about health. In fact he's had a test, but it took him a while to get round to it. It's not that the topic is taboo, more that it never seems quite the right moment to ask a delicate question. 'But talking about health with your dad, and particularly the misconceptions around prostate cancer, could save their life. It is one of the best things you could do this Father's Day, and a true act of love'. Although one in eight men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer in their lifetimes, polling has found only 7 per cent of men know that the disease is symptomless in its early stages. Mr Sunak warns too many men were leaving it 'dangerously late' to seek help, only coming forward when symptoms such as pain or blood in urine began to show. 'Ignorance is costing lives' He says: 'The cancer will almost certainly be advanced at this point, and treatment far less certain to succeed. This ignorance is costing lives. It is why we need a targeted national screening programme to make sure that the right men are being checked at the right time for the disease. If we can make this happen, we can save thousands of lives.' Mr Sunak adds that since becoming an ambassador for the charity: 'What has really struck me in this time is how alien it is for men to proactively ask to be checked for a disease. Our assumption is that if everything is working fine, it is fine. 'When I raise prostate cancer and the need to get checked, men regularly tell me that everything is functioning down there, so they don't need a test. But that is not right: and this confusion is costing lives.' The UK NSC is expected to make a decision by the end of this year. Its members are considering different models, with discussions about the definition of close relatives if a family history becomes part of the criteria for targeted screening. As well as family history, risk factors also include ethnic group – with one in four black men diagnosed with the disease. Many experts in prostate cancer are calling for the 'dangerous' guidelines to be changed, so that younger men with a family history of prostate cancer such as Sir Chris Hoy can be tested for the disease. The 49-year-old, who is a six-time Olympic cycling gold medallist, was told he has two to four years to live after being diagnosed with terminal cancer that originated in his prostate. Despite a family history of prostate cancer – which affected both his father and grandfather – he was never offered PSA tests. In the UK prostate cancer is the most common cancer in men, with over 55,000 new cases diagnosed annually. Cases have risen by one quarter in the last five years. Despite improvements in survival, over 12,000 men die from prostate cancer each year. If prostate cancer is caught early, the chances of successful treatment are far higher. If it is detected after the disease has spread, the success rate of treatment is below 50 per cent. Mr Sunak salutes the work of men who have spoken out about the need to get checked, saying his friend Joe Biden's diagnosis would also raise awareness. Oliver Kemp, chief executive of Prostate Cancer Research, said the rollout of targeted screening would prevent 300 men a year from developing incurable disease. He said: 'Every 40 minutes in the UK, a family loses a father, a grandfather, or a son to prostate cancer. This is a tragedy compounded by a postcode lottery that means a man's chances of survival can depend on where he lives. 'The current passive system, where men must know their own risk and ask for a test, is failing us and worsening health inequality across the UK. That is why Prostate Cancer Research is calling for the urgent introduction of a targeted national screening programme for men at the highest risk, including black men and those with a family history of the disease'.
Yahoo
13-06-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
The one thing you must discuss with your dad on Father's Day
On Father's Day, many of us will call our Dads for a chat. We'll discuss many things: the news, sport, the family. But few of us will touch on our health. For we men aren't very good at addressing that: I am the son of a GP but even my dad and I don't talk enough about health. In fact he's had a prostate cancer test, but it took him a while to get around to it. It's not that the topic is taboo, more that it never seems quite the right moment to ask a delicate question. But talking about health with your dad, and particularly the misconceptions around prostate cancer, could save their life. It is one of the best things you could do this Father's Day, and a true act of love. I have been an ambassador for Prostate Cancer Research for three months now, and what has really struck me in this time is how alien it is for men to proactively ask to be checked for a disease. Our assumption is that if everything is working fine, it is fine. I've been talking to men about the disease in Yorkshire, in London, in Southampton and it's worrying how many misconceptions there are about Britain's most common cancer. When I raise prostate cancer and the need to get checked, men regularly tell me that everything is functioning down there, so they don't need a test. But that is not right: and this confusion is costing lives. An Ipsos poll found that just 7 per cent of people know that prostate cancer – which one in eight men will be diagnosed with during their lifetime – is symptomless in the early stages. If you wait to take action until you are in pain, there's blood in your urine or you are having trouble peeing, you will have left it dangerously late. The cancer will almost certainly be advanced at this point, and treatment far less certain to succeed. This ignorance is costing lives. It is why we need a targeted national screening programme to make sure that the right men are being checked at the right time for the disease. If we can make this happen, we can save thousands of lives. So, this Father's Day, talk through with your dad the risk factors for prostate cancer. Does he have a close relative who has had the disease? If so, he's more at risk and should make getting checked a priority. Are you black? If so, your risk is significantly higher – one in four black men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer. The benefit of getting checked is that if the disease is caught early, it can be treated relatively easily and with a high success rate. But if it is caught after the cancer has spread then that makes treatment far harder and is bad news for survival chances. Once the cancer has spread, the success rate of treatment is below 50 per cent. Thanks to the work of charities such as Prostate Cancer Research and the bravery of individuals hit by the diseases who have spoken out about the need to get checked, people are far more aware of prostate cancer than they were. I know my friend President Biden's fight against the disease will raise awareness too. I also salute the thousands who will join the March for Men in Battersea Park today. But despite all this work, too few people know that prostate cancer is generally symptomless in the early stages. I've even heard from consultants treating patients who were initially denied a PSA screening test on the basis that they had no symptoms. The National Screening Committee will decide later this year whether to introduce a targeted national screening programme. I would urge them to commit to this without delay. It is a move that will save lives and with the number of prostate cancer cases having increased by 25 per cent in the past five years, the problem is too urgent to wait any longer. We need a screening programme for the UK's most common cancer now. Rishi Sunak is the MP for Richmond and Northallerton and the former prime minister Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
