The Government recognises that tackling major conditions that cause ill-health - including prostate cancer - provides an opportunity to improve the lives of millions of people. That is why a Major Conditions Strategy will be developed and published over the next year to outline how outcomes in six major condition areas will be improved, including all cancers.
Raising awareness of prostate cancer is key to driving earlier diagnosis and increasing survival rates, particularly for men at higher risk, such as those with a family history of prostate cancer. This is particularly important to addressing the variation in diagnosis times for prostate cancer between the north and south of England, as Prostate Cancer UK have recently highlighted.
In February and March 2022, an awareness campaign was run by NHS England and Improvement and Prostate Cancer UK to encourage men to use Prostate Cancer UK’s clinically approved risk checker to make an informed choice on further tests. The Risk Checker can be accessed here: https://prostatecanceruk.org/risk-checker
Whilst there are no current plans to introduce an NHS screening programme for prostate cancer, I understand that the UK National Screening Programme is due to review the evidence for prostate screening in 2023.
I am encouraged that NHS England and NHS Improvement are implementing a best practice pathway for prostate cancer, including the use of MRI scanning prior to biopsy for a faster diagnosis.
New research is also vital to improving outcomes for those diagnosed with cancer. £75 million was announced in April 2018 to fund specific research into prostate cancer over the following five years. This is supporting over 40,000 men to participate in more than 60 prostate cancer studies, testing treatments including more precise radiotherapy, high-intensity focused ultrasound, and cryotherapy.
Thank you for drawing my attention to the campaign being run by Prostate Cancer UK to raise awareness of the need for men and boys with incontinence to have access to sanitary waste bins. Myself or a member of my team will continue to monitor its progress.