Urgent warning as 1 in 3 men diagnosed with common cancer too late to be cured
PROSTATE cancer patients across the UK are facing a “postcode lottery” of care, a charity has warned.
New data suggests up to one in three men in the UK are diagnosed with the disease too late to be cured.
Prostate cancer is the most common cancer affecting men in the UK with over 40,000 new cases diagnosed each year.
And it's very treatable if caught early.
But said the number of men diagnosed with the disease when it is too advanced to treat varies significantly depending on where patients live.
In Scotland, more than a third (35 per cent) of men are only diagnosed when the disease is classed as stage 4 – which means the cancer has spread to another part of the body and is also known as metastatic cancer.
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This is compared to just 12.5 per cent of men in London.
When a cancer becomes metastatic it can rarely be cured.
The data suggests men from deprived areas are at higher risk of being diagnosed at a later stage of the disease, the charity added.
While the figures are largely taken from information gathered before the pandemic, the charity suggested that outcomes for men are not likely to have improved during the period when the health services across the UK have been under significant pressure.
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The cancer charity used various data sets to find out the proportion of patients diagnosed with metastatic prostate cancer.
What are the symptoms every man needs to know?
In most cases, prostate cancer doesn’t have any symptoms until the growth is big enough to put pressure on the urethra – that tube you pee through.
Symptoms include:
- Needing to urinate more often, especially at night
- Needing to rush to the toilet
- Difficulty in starting to pee
- Weak flow
- Straining and taking a long time while peeing
- Feeling that your bladder hasn’t emptied fully
Many men’s prostates get larger as they age because of the non-cancerous conditions, prostate enlargement, and benign prostatic hyperplasia.
In fact, these two conditions are more common than prostate cancer – but that doesn’t mean the symptoms should be ignored.
The signs that cancer has SPREAD include bone, back, or testicular pain, loss of appetite, and unexplained weight loss.
Source: Prostate Cancer UK
Laura Kerby, the chief executive of Prostate Cancer UK, said: “This postcode lottery for cancer diagnosis simply isn’t fair, and the picture in Scotland is particularly shocking.
"Every man should get an equal chance of a cure, which is only possible if his cancer is caught early.
“Unfortunately, early prostate cancer usually doesn’t have any symptoms, which is why men need to be aware of their risk and should take to find out more.
"If you’re at higher risk – which includes all men over 50 – you’re entitled to a free PSA blood test from your GP.
"Because of their higher risk, we strongly recommend that black men and men with a family history of prostate cancer should speak to their GP from the age of 45.”
Laura raised concerns about fewer men being diagnosed since the arrival of Covid, saying there was “a long way to go to fully reverse the impact of the pandemic”.
How is prostate cancer treated?
Assuming prostate cancer is caught in its early stages, treatment is not normally immediately necessary.
In these cases, doctors have a policy of "watchful waiting".
Treatment includes surgically removing the prostate, radiotherapy, and hormone therapy.
One man was cured after being given testosterone in an experimental trial designed to shock tumours to death.
Nearly all prostate cancer treatments come with the unwanted side effects of erectile dysfunction and urinary incontinence, which is why many men choose to delay treatment.
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The only exception is non-surgical laser treatment, which doesn't cause impotence - but is still in its trial stages.
If the cancer has already spread, it cannot be treated, and medical help is focused on prolonging life and relieving symptoms.