Streeting orders prostate cancer review after Chris Hoy calls for early testing | Cancer

The Health Secretary has ordered the NHS in England to review its guidance on prostate cancer testing amid Sir Chris Hoy’s “strong” call for men in their 40s to be screened.

Olympic cycling champion Hoy, who has terminal cancer, urged men with a family history of prostate cancer to visit their GP for a blood test, even if they are under 50.

“If you, like me, have a family history of it and are over 45, ask your doctor,” Hoy told the BBC.

Currently, NHS guidelines for England state that anyone over 50 can request a prostate-specific antigen (PSA) test.

Asked about Hoy’s comments, Wes Streeting, the health secretary, said: “I think he makes a strong case here.

“That is why I have asked the NHS to consider the case for lowering the screening age for prostate cancer and [he] is even a particularly convincing argument when there is a family history.”

Streeting’s intervention is likely to raise eyebrows among experts and doctors. There is no national screening program for prostate cancer in the UK. There is no reliable test that can detect prostate cancer that requires treatment at an early stage.

Researchers have also previously looked at the PSA test for prostate cancer screening in patients without symptoms.

Overall, however, studies show that this results in only a small decrease in the number of men dying from prostate cancer. Studies also show that some men are diagnosed with prostate cancer that would not have caused any problems or required treatment.

Hoy, who has terminal prostate cancer, said more men need to come forward for the PSA blood test.

Both his grandfather and his father had prostate cancer.

He said men should have the option to take a screening test when they are younger.

“Catch it before you have to undergo major treatment. For me it seems to be a given. Reduce the age and allow more men to easily go for a blood test.

“Maybe people seeing this or hearing about my story – just by asking their GP – will generate so much interest that the people making the decisions will say, ‘You know what, we need to look into this.’ ‘ And in the long run, this will potentially save millions of lives.”

The charity Prostate Cancer UK advises black people or those with a family history of prostate cancer to speak to their GP about a PSA test from the age of 45.

Men of any age with symptoms can request a test.

Men whose brother or father has prostate cancer are 2.5 times more likely to develop prostate cancer, and the risk increases even further if they were under 60 at the time of diagnosis.