A SUPPORT group is calling for 'missing men' in South Cumbria prostate cancer diagnosis data to be found with earlier and more readily available testing.

The FPCSG (Furness Prostate Cancer Support Group) has cited new figures from NHS England showing that there were 1,574 men registered with prostate cancer in the NHS Lancashire and South Cumbria Integrated Care Board area in 2022  - a 17% increase on the year before.

But the rate of diagnoses - at 177 cases per 100,000 men - is the lowest across the country.

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Six-time Olympic cycling champion Sir Christopher Hoy MBE was diagnosed with prostate cancer in September last year but announced last month his condition was terminal.

The athlete has made a public plea for the testing age to be reduced to 45 or perhaps even 40 for men with a family history, or from an African-Caribbean background, as both groups of men are known to be more at risk and indeed.

This was reinforced by the current Health Minister Wes Streeting, who is looking at the case for lowering the screening age for prostate cancer.

Prostate Cancer UK said the data vindicates its campaign to find the 'missing men' not getting checked, but warned many were still being diagnosed too late.

Amy Rylance, assistant director of health improvement at the charity, said there was a 'huge drop' in men getting tested for prostate cancer during the pandemic.

Furness Prostate Cancer Support Group is calling for action to be taken now. 

(Image: Furness Prostate Cancer Support logo) Steve Drury the chairman of the FPCSG, said: "This is evidence that there are 'missing men' throughout the county who, for one reason or another, have not been diagnosed.

"My opinion is that GPs in our area are not offering the PSA Test to men over 50
without any symptoms, but the Sir Chris Hoy story is clear evidence that
men can have PCa (the second most common cancer in men worldwide) without symptoms.

"The reality is at Stages 1 and 2 there are none but this is the perfect time to find this cancer.

"Sir Chris is at Stage 4 without symptoms but he does have an issue within his family as both his father and grandfather had the disease.

"Prostate Cancer is the number one cancer in men. 1 in 8 will be diagnosed and last year almost 55,000 men were diagnosed, of them over 11,000 died."

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The UK National Screening Committee does not currently recommend screening for prostate cancer because the PSA test is not considered reliable enough to detect prostate cancer that needs treatment.

PSA stands for prostate specific antigen made by both normal and cancerous prostate cells. It is normal for all men to have some PSA in their blood and according to Cancer Research UK, a high level of PSA can be a sign of prostate cancer but can also be raised because of other conditions that are not cancer.

(Image: Radar) These include a urine infection and a benign enlarged prostate.

PSA Testing Charity The Graham Fulford Trust said it had seen large numbers of men over fifty coming to it because their GP has refused them a PSA test - many of them with a family history.

A spokesperson said: "We appreciate all men should receive counselling before undergoing a test, and we have sympathy for GPs facing increasing demand for their services with stretched reserves, particularly following the once in a lifetime impact of the Covid pandemic.

"We do believe strongly however, that they should be giving credence to the latest research, which shows that conducting MRI scans before biopsies, using risk-based factors such as age, ethnicity, and family history, must be acknowledged. There are also a range of new advanced psa tests at their disposal which show excellent results in terms of more effective diagnosis."