Thousands of men urged 'help shape the future' in major NHS cancer project

Thousands of men urged 'help shape the future' in major NHS cancer project The NHS is backing a major research project Thousands of men are being urged to join a major research project that could help develop better tests, treatments and screening for a disease. The appeal is aimed at anyone who has ever had prostate cancer, with volunteers asked to complete regular online questionnaires and allow researchers to securely link the information with their NHS records. The initiative, called Prostate Progress, is being run by the charity Prostate Cancer Research in partnership with the NHS through the NHS DigiTrials programme. Researchers hope the data will help improve diagnosis, personalise treatment and speed up the development of new therapies. The NHS said: "If you have ever had, or are currently living with prostate cancer, you can sign up to be part of research that will help improve tests, screenings and care." The appeal comes as awareness of prostate cancer has risen sharply following the campaigning of Olympic cycling legend Sir Chris Hoy, who revealed last year that he has prostate cancer. Since then, the 11-time world champion has repeatedly called for earlier diagnosis and better screening, helping push prostate cancer higher up the public health agenda. Alongside Sir Chris, the broadcaster, actor and writer Sir Stephen Fry has become one of the country's best-known advocates after undergoing surgery for an aggressive prostate cancer in 2018. Sir Stephen is directly involved with the Prostate Progress campaign and is fronting the NHS-backed recruitment drive. Launching the initiative last year, he said: "If you've had prostate cancer, joining Prostate Progress is one of the most important things you can do. It takes very little effort, but the information you provide could help save lives for generations to come." He added that he was "delighted" to support the project because combining patients' experiences with NHS health records could give researchers an unprecedented understanding of the disease and help improve care for future generations. The study hopes to recruit men from all backgrounds, particularly those whose experiences are often under-represented in research. Around one in eight white men and one in four Black men in the UK will develop prostate cancer during their lifetime. Participants will be asked to complete an online survey every few months. With their permission, researchers will securely link those responses to de-identified NHS records, allowing scientists to study everything from diagnosis and treatment to long-term outcomes and side effects. Only approved researchers working on projects that benefit public health can access the anonymised data. Researchers hope the information will help identify which treatments work best, speed up diagnosis, improve NHS services and make it easier to match suitable patients to clinical trials. The appeal also comes amid growing pressure for improvements to prostate cancer screening. Although men aged 50 and over can request a PSA blood test from their GP, there is still no routine national screening programme because the current test is not considered accurate enough for population-wide use. Campaigners, including Sir Chris Hoy, have called for faster progress towards more effective early detection. More information here.