Former Prime Minister David Cameron has shared he was successfully treated for prostate cancer as he backs a targeted screening programme for the disease
Former Prime Minister Lord David Cameron has disclosed that he was successfully treated for prostate cancer and is now advocating for a targeted screening programme.
His wife, Samantha, encouraged him to get tested after they heard Nick Jones, the founder of Soho House, discuss his own experience with the disease on the radio a year ago, according to The Times.
Cameron’s diagnosis of the most common cancer in men in the UK was confirmed following a prostate specific antigen (PSA) test, an MRI scan, and a biopsy.
“You always dread hearing those words,” Cameron confessed to The Times.
“And then literally as they’re coming out of the doctor’s mouth you’re thinking, ‘Oh, no, he’s going to say it. He’s going to say it. Oh God, he said it’.”, reports Nottinghamshire Live.
He acknowledged his influential position, stating: “This is something we’ve really got to think about, talk about, and if necessary, act on.
“I want to, as it were, come out,” he declared. “I want to add my name to the long list of people calling for a targeted screening programme.
“I don’t particularly like discussing my personal intimate health issues, but I feel I ought to.
“Let’s be honest. Men are not very good at talking about their health. We tend to put things off.
“We’re embarrassed to talk about something like the prostate, because it’s so intricately connected with sexual health and everything else.
“I sort of thought, well, this has happened to you, and you should lend your voice to it.
“I would feel bad if I didn’t come forward and say that I’ve had this experience. I had a scan. It helped me discover something that was wrong. It gave me the chance to deal with it.”
He underwent focal therapy for treatment, where electrical pulses are used to target and destroy cancer cells.
Prostate cancer is the most prevalent cancer in males in the UK, with approximately 55,000 new cases each year. However, there is currently no screening programme for prostate cancer in the UK due to concerns about the accuracy of PSA tests.
“I know it’s not a slam dunk,” he told the Times. “There are respectable arguments against a screening programme.
“You’ve always got to think how many cases do we discover and how many misdiagnoses are there and how many people will be treated unnecessarily.
“But it seems to me that quite a lot of things have changed over the last few years.
“The circumstances are changing. The arguments are changing, and so it’s a really good moment to have another look at this.”
Following Cameron’s announcement, a major trial testing the most promising screening techniques for the disease has begun.
The Transform project will compare various screening methods to current NHS diagnostic processes – which can include blood tests and biopsies.
This project is delivered in partnership with the NHS through the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR), which has committed ÂŁ16 million in funding, with the remainder coming from charity Prostate Cancer UK.
The trial arrives as the UK National Screening Committee (NSC) prepares to reveal its verdict on whether existing evidence supports introducing screening for the illness.
Chiara De Biase, director of health services, equity and improvement at Prostate Cancer UK said: “We’re glad to hear that David Cameron found his prostate cancer at an early stage and had successful treatment.
“We thank him for sharing his story and in doing so raising vital awareness of this disease, which is completely curable if found early. But men’s lives should not be left to chance.
“We lose 12,000 dads, brothers, sons and friends to this disease every year. We’ve reached a tipping point in the UK, with too many men dying from a curable disease and worse outcomes for men at higher risk like black men and men from working class communities.
“Prostate cancer is the last major cancer without a screening programme, and we need change now.”
The most frequent signs of prostate cancer include needing to urinate more frequently and struggling to pass water.
Men may also experience the sensation that their bladder hasn’t completely emptied.
These indicators are widespread and don’t necessarily signal someone has cancer, but they ought to be examined by a GP.
