UK National Screening Committee Recommends PSA Testing Only For A Few Thousand High-Risk Men

The UK National Screening Committee (UKNSC) recommended that only "a few thousand" high-risk men in the UK should be tested for prostate cancer, warning that attempting to detect the disease using the prostate specific antigen (PSA) blood test is "likely to cause more harm than good."

“- Published Only "a few thousand" men who have a dangerous genetic variant and a family history of cancer should be screened for prostate cancer with a blood test, according to the final recommendations of scientific advisers”

BBC

The committee said men with BRCA2 genetic mutations should be screened every two years, between the ages of 45 and 61, if they have a family history of certain cancers.

BBC

The final guidance differs from a draft recommendation published in November, which said men with both BRCA1 and BRCA2 gene mutations should be screened.

The UKNSC also recommended against screening for other at-risk groups, including black men, saying there is "ongoing uncertainty on whether screening would cause more good than harm."

Former prime minister Lord David Cameron urged the government to reject the UKNSC recommendation, describing it as a "real step back" in a post on X.

Chiara De Biase, fundraising and health strategy director at Prostate Cancer UK, said the charity was "deeply disappointed" and argued that "a mass screening programme could save thousands of men's lives."

LBC

Professor Sir Mike Richards, chairman of the UKNSC, told a briefing that "We absolutely recognise the strong support for prostate cancer screening" but also the "very real harm" it can cause for patients and their families.

Richards said screening can reduce deaths "to a small extent" but "does not improve overall survival," and he warned that once a prostate cancer is found, clinicians "still can’t reliably tell which cancers need treatment and which do not."

The BBC said the final decision rests with health ministers in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, after the UKNSC concluded that harms outweigh benefits for all other groups.

“The UK National Screening Committee (UKNSC) said only "a few thousand" high-risk men in the UK should be tested for prostate cancer”

Sky News

The BBC reported that for every 1,000 men screened in their 50s, it would save two lives from prostate cancer over the next 15 years, while also leading to 20 men being told they have a cancer that would never need treatment.

The BBC quoted Prof Sir Mike Richards saying, "do need the evidence first," and it said the committee would continuously evaluate new evidence as it comes in, including results of the Transform trial.

The BBC added that the final advice suggests screening should not be offered to all men, including black men, and that eligible men should be invited for a PSA blood test every two years between the ages of 45 and 61.