Jeremy Clarkson and Stephen Fry urge Government to act on prostate cancerEarlier this year, the UK National Screening Committee recommended against screening all men using the PSA blood test.Jeremy Clarkson is in remission after being diagnosed with prostate cancer (PA)PA WireJane Kirby2 minutes ago
Jeremy Clarkson and Sir Stephen Fry are among those who have called on the new Health Secretary to “change the story on prostate cancer” and review the rules on testing.
The Clarkson’s Farm presenter, 66, is in remission after revealing on the latest series that he had been diagnosed with “aggressive” prostate cancer.
Sir Stephen, who had surgery for prostate cancer in 2018, often campaigns to encourage men to take part in prostate research.
The pair have joined former prime ministers Lord David Cameron and Rishi Sunak to sign a letter to Yvette Cooper saying they are “united by a shared belief that no man in this country should die of a cancer that could have been caught in time”.
Earlier this year, the UK National Screening Committee recommended against screening all men using the PSA blood test, saying it is “likely to cause more harm than good”.
It said instead that a few thousand high-risk men with a certain gene mutation should be screened for the disease.
Sir Stephen Fry after being made a Knight Bachelor at an Investiture ceremony at Windsor Castle, Berkshire. He had prostate surgery in 2018 (PA)PA Archive
The Transform trial, funded by Prostate Cancer UK and the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR), is currently examining whether there should be wider population testing.
Experts hope it will give initial findings within months and will report on which tests – such as genetic tests or 10-minute MRI scans – can be combined to screen more men.
In the new letter, published in the Daily Mail, celebrities said the current position on screening puts men at risk.
It said: “Everyone else at high risk doesn’t have guaranteed access to a test that could save their life.
“We believe that’s wrong, and that you, as Secretary of State, have both the evidence and the power to overturn the ruling.”
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Signatories, which also include film director Sir Steve McQueen, actor Colin McFarlane and businessman Nick Jones, add: “Unless a man carries one specific genetic variant, there is still no route to a test beyond hoping a GP takes his concerns seriously.
“That cannot be right.”
They then ask Ms Cooper to “commit to a targeted national screening programme”.
Prostate cancer is the most common cancer in men in the UK, with more than 55,000 men being diagnosed every year and around 12,300 dying from the disease.
A Department of Health and Social Care spokesman said: “We pay tribute to the former prime ministers and other figures who have campaigned tirelessly to raise awareness and improve treatment of prostate cancer, and we understand their strength of feeling on this issue.
“Following the recommendations of the UK National Screening Committee earlier this year, we have begun work to implement England’s first targeted prostate screening programme.
“We have also invested over £20 million to improve prostate cancer research, including increasing the availability of focal therapy, and funding the expansion of the Transform trial, which is designed to find the best way to screen for the condition.
“This will mean more research, better treatments and more lives saved in the years to come.
“It has always been understood that the benefits of screening programmes must be balanced against the risks, but the UK National Screening Committee is always prepared to reassess its approach where new evidence becomes available, and will continue working to strike the right balance between risks and benefits.”
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Stephen FryJeremy ClarksonGovernmentDavid CameronSteve McQueen