Prostate Cancer Research report reveals low cost of life-saving targeted screening
A new Prostate Cancer Research report has revealed that a life-saving targeted screening programme would cost just 0.01% of the annual NHS budget. The charity says the findings prove a national screening programme targeted at high-risk men – Black men and men with a family history of prostate cancer – is affordable, practical and a vital step in reversing health inequalities.
The report’s key findings include:
- The annual investment of £25 million would translate to an estimated 1,254 years of life saved for the target groups each year. This equates to approximately £20,000 for every extra year of life saved, representing strong evidence in favour of targeted screening.
- The estimated cost per eligible individual is just £18, aligning with, or below, existing national cancer screening programmes like breast and bowel cancer. Plus the introduction of reflex testing in the future could further reduce annual costs.
- The report shows that identifying Black men within a specific age range is relatively straightforward, as ethnicity and age are now routinely captured in most primary care records. Identifying individuals with a family history is also possible, with recent pilots showing that supplementing GP records with self-reported data can significantly improve case identification.
Oliver Kemp MBE, Chief Executive, Prostate Cancer Research, said: "Our report proves without doubt that a targeted screening programme can and should be implemented now. The current system, which relies on men to come forward, is failing thousands of families every single year. For an investment of just £18 per eligible person – a cost entirely comparable with breast and bowel cancer screening – we can give men at the highest risk a fighting chance of early diagnosis, when their cancer would be easiest to treat. The demands on our NHS are manageable when compared to the enormous, life-saving benefits. The evidence is clear; every year we delay costs more lives and tears more families apart.”
Campaign call and film released
PIF member Prostate Cancer Research is calling on the public to support its campaign for the fight for national screening and has released a video directed by Sir Steve McQueen CBE and starring David Harewood. The film urges viewers to sign up for the national screening campaign, highlighting how men with a family history of prostate cancer and Black men are those at the highest risk – data shows 1 in 8 men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer and for black men, it’s 2 in 8. The film shows David Harewood going for a prostate cancer screening scan and explaining how the disease kills over 12,000 men in the UK every year but by catching it earlier more men will survive.
Strengthening case finding and generating evidence
Prostate Cancer Research is recommending the UK National Screening Committee recommends a national programme targeted at screening for prostate cancer in high-risk men aged 45-69 to reduce inequalities and save lives. Following its findings, the charity is also calling on NHS bodies across the UK and relevant devolved governments to strengthen case finding and data, standardising how ethnicity and family history are recorded and supporting this with national and community outreach. National funders should enable NHS-led piloting, implementation and evaluation of emerging technologies to generate the evidence needed for adoption and future whole population screening, the report recommends.
Read the full report and join the campaign on the Prostate Cancer Research website here.