Support Group Raises Concerns Over Prostate Cancer Testing

There is a ‘major problem’ with prostate cancer support and men approaching doctors for tests are being ‘turned away’.

This emerged at an Isle of Wight public meeting yesterday (Wednesday, July 1).

Alan Taylor, from the Isle of Wight Prostate Cancer Support Group, spoke out at a landmark event at the Riverside Centre, organised by Healthwatch Isle of Wight and attended by over 70 patients, carers, health professionals and members of the public.

Mr Taylor said the charity tests 2,000 men each year, with 200 receiving ‘abnormal results’ who then require a visit to a doctor.

“2017 – we decided trying to do PSA testing because we were talking to men at certain shows around the Island and asking them to go and get a PSA test,” Mr Taylor said.

“They were talking to us three months later at another show saying: ‘we approached the doctor’s and they were turning us away’.

That’s still happening today, even the day before yesterday when I stood outside Tesco in Freshwater and spoke to men there – and they’d been turned away.

“The doctor says: ‘don’t worry about this group, they don’t know what they’re doing…they’ve got no medical qualifications’.”

Mr Taylor added there was a ‘problem’ at GP level which he said he raised in 2016 and was ‘reassured’ something would be done.

He also pointed to a lack of information on different treatments for patients and inadequate support after diagnosis.

Dr David Isaac, a GP on the Coming Together for Cancer event panel, said: “Alan, you know this is a national debate. It’s in the newspapers every week. There have been high profile cases – Chris Hoy being one of the recent ones, Jeremy Clarkson.

“There’s a massive number of men with prostate cancer and you know and I know prostate cancer is the least straightforward cancer – it’s a really difficult one to know what the best option is.

“You’re quite right, how do you know when you’re offering someone four treatments which one’s going to be the best one.

He added it was something that doctors nationally are ‘trying to unravel’.

Dr Isaac referred to advice given to the government from former National Cancer Director, Professor Mike Richards but said the Health Secretary, Wes Streeting, resigned before he had a chance to consider it.

He also mentioned the ‘massive’ Transform study – a £60 million prostate cancer screening trial, with results currently being awaited.

Mr Taylor said there are ‘13,000 men’ dying each year and that his support group should not need to exist, with a helpline he mans ‘24/7’.