CampaignsHealthcare RationingCancer Screening & TreatmentPaving the way for more prostate screening Paving the way for more prostate screening
05/09/2007
A new research project being started in Bristol into ways of improving the diagnosis and treatment of prostate cancer could pave the way for a national screening programme in the future. It involves testing urine instead of blood, which may be a more accurate indicator of the disease.
At present, there is no formal screening programme for prostate cancer as there is for breast cancer in women. Only one man in 12 in the UK has the PSA blood test - which can be an early indicator of prostate cancer - despite the fact that early detection greatly improves the chances of successful treatment.
David Gillatt, Senior Urologist from the Bristol Urological Institute, said: "Testing urine instead of blood may make the eventual introduction of a national screening programme possible. The urine of someone with prostate cancer may give off certain compounds which can be detected by the latest scientific techniques”
Funding for the project, raised at last year’s Run for the Future organised by Bristol Rotarians, will pay for scientists to work as part of a joint research team from the University of the West of England and the Bristol Urological Institute at Southmead Hospital. The urine test research is one of two projects to be funded - the other will examine tissue samples from men who have had more aggressive forms of prostate cancer to look for indicators of which cancers can be most successfully treated.
The 2007 Run for the Future takes place on in Bristol on Sunday, 16th September, when it is hoped that more than 1,000 runners from all over the South West will take part. Money raised will again go to the BUI Bristol Prostate Cancer Appeal. For further information, or to participate in the event, visit the website at the link below or phone the Run for the Future office on 0117 9596328 for a Registration form.