The charity says men at increased risk of prostate cancer should be offered the test by their GP, even if they have no symptoms of the disease.
The recommendation is based on two studies by Prostate Cancer UK which found that tests measuring prostate-specific antigen (PSA) levels “reduce the number of men dying” from the disease – despite previously being considered unreliable.
Currently, doctors offer PSA tests to men with symptoms of prostate cancer, but they cannot proactively offer them to high-risk men without symptoms, such as men over 50, black men, and men with a family history of the disease.
This helps prevent patients without cancer from undergoing further tests and procedures that they do not need, such as invasive biopsies.
The NHS says PSA levels can increase as a result of other non-cancer conditions, but doctors cannot tell from the test whether the cause is cancer or not.
But Dr Matthew Hobbs, director of research at Prostate Cancer UK, said current guidelines were “undoubtedly causing late diagnosis” and causing “huge inequalities in the UK”.
“Historically, the evidence that PSA testing saved lives was weak, but there was strong evidence that testing caused harm,” Dr. Hobbs said.
“Now the situation has changed; “We have strong evidence from two separate studies that PSA testing actually reduces the number of men dying from prostate cancer.”
Research by the charity found that the potential harm from the disease was reduced by 79% if men had a PSA test and MRI before the biopsy – compared with men who did not have an MRI.
Prostate Cancer UK is now calling for NHS guidance to “adapt to contemporary evidence”.
More than 52,000 people are diagnosed with prostate cancer each year, making it the most common cancer affecting men.
Sir Rod Stewart has encouraged men to get tested after battling prostate cancer. Photo: AP
Symptoms may include trouble urinating or an increased need to urinate, as well as blood in urine or semen.
In November 2023, Clive Efford, Labor MP for Eltham and Chislehurst, was diagnosed with prostate cancer and said his doctors were “disrespectful” when he asked for a test, despite the disease running in his family.
He said the new report “makes clear that my doctors' reluctance was unfounded and out of date” and that “there is no excuse for the guidelines not to have changed.”
Various celebrities have previously spoken out about the need for regular testing.
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Sir Rod Stewart revealed in 2019 that he had been undergoing treatment for prostate cancer for three years and said the disease was only detected early when he started going for regular check-ups.
The number of referrals for prostate cancer has also increased after death BBC presenter Bill Turnbull in 2022 and beyond comedian and former QI host Stefan Fry revealed his prostate cancer diagnosis in 2018.
An NHS spokesman said the NHS is committed to using proven and effective cancer screening techniques that can benefit patients, and will work with the Government to introduce updates to UK screening guidelines.
A spokesman for the Department of Health and Social Care said it was investing £16 million to find “new ways to detect prostate cancer in men as early as possible, giving them the best chance of survival”.
