Hertfordshire prostate cancer support group urges men to get tested
This comes after Prostate Cancer UK launched an awareness campaign
A prostate cancer support group from Hertfordshire is urging men of all ages to be alert of any symptoms.
‘Friends of Prostate Sufferers’ (FOPS) is based in Chorleywood, Hertfordshire, and they offer support to men with prostate cancer through monthly meetings and yearly tests.
Julian Shah, Chairman of the group and a Consultant Urological Surgeon, said: “Anybody who feels out on a limb or needs an explanation of what the problem they're suffering with is, whether it's benign or malignant, it doesn't matter, they can come to us.”
“We also run a roadshow every year, or perhaps twice a year, where we invite anybody to come to our church and we will test them for prostate cancer. This year, we found 14 abnormalities out of 180 men, which is quite a lot.”
This comes after Prostate Cancer UK launched an awareness campaign to ‘dispel widespread misconceptions about the most common cancer in men’.
They say that 44% of men do not know where their prostate is, and 74% aren’t sure what it does.
Julian says that this is very worrying. He added: “Most people don't understand their Physiology, and even if it's explained to them, it's not easy to understand unless it's done very clearly.
“But of course, the job of FOPS is to try to explain to men what these organs do and what goes wrong with them. And also, what we can do to make things better.”
According to Prostate Cancer UK, only 35% of men realise that early-stage prostate cancer often has no symptoms.
Julian said: “The problem with prostate cancer is that it's almost a silent disease, so it's there and you don't necessarily know about it, and it can present late. That's why 12,000 men a year die of prostate cancer.
“So, the whole point is to understand what the prostate is, where it is, where it lies, what it does, and look for side effects or be tested in order to pick up any risky signs of prostate cancer, which can then be treated sooner than later.”
Furthermore, over half (53%) think they'll be invited for testing if they're at higher risk, but they won’t.
Julian said that that’s why men should still check even if they weren’t invited.
He said: “A lot of patients, especially the younger ones, don't have any symptoms. If you get bone pain from prostate cancer, it means it's spread to the bones. And that's a pretty late-stage event.
“So, that's why picking it up early is a good thing, if you can do that.”