Olympic cycling legend Sir Chris Hoy has voiced strong criticism regarding the lack of routine prostate cancer screening, asserting that there has been insufficient interest in implementing such a potentially life-saving measure. Hoy, who was diagnosed with prostate cancer nearly three years ago and found it had spread to his bones, highlighted the ongoing issue of thousands of men being diagnosed with incurable disease because their condition is caught too late.
This sentiment comes as Hoy paid tribute to broadcaster Dermot Murnaghan, who died from the disease at the age of 68. Murnaghan had been diagnosed with stage four prostate cancer a year prior to his death.
Sir Chris's personal diagnosis in 2023 significantly raised public awareness of prostate cancer, leading to a surge in men seeking prostate-specific antigen (PSA) tests. He has since been a prominent advocate for universal NHS screening for men over 50.
However, a consultation announced in May recommended screening only for men with specific genetic markers and a family history of relevant cancers. The argument against universal screening is that it could subject men at low risk of dying from prostate cancer to unnecessary treatments, which may lead to side effects like incontinence and erectile dysfunction.
Hoy, 50, expressed his incredulity at the current approach, suggesting that the powers that be would rather accept that 10,000 men annually are diagnosed too late and become incurable, rather than potentially intervening earlier. "Surely we’re better off having information, being educated about what that means and then either having treatment or not," Hoy stated. "That’s your own decision, and your information, to deal with. I just find it infuriating."
He recalled a sense that momentum for change had dissipated, stating, "The whole way through, I just got the vibe that there was never going to be any change... there was nobody really pushing it. Nobody wanted it."
Approximately 64,000 men are diagnosed with prostate cancer each year in the UK, with Scotland accounting for over 5,000 of these cases. Hoy described Murnaghan as a "kind and gracious man" and a significant figure in his personal life, lamenting his death from the "cruel disease."
A spokesperson for the Scottish Government acknowledged the advocacy of Sir Chris and other campaigners, stating their shared desire to improve detection rates for the disease. They noted that the Scottish Government consults the UK National Screening Committee, an independent expert group that advises on screening policy across the UK. While acknowledging that a sufficiently accurate test and treatment for early-stage prostate cancer suitable for a national screening program have not yet been established, the government awaits the results of the UK Transform trial, which is expected to have relevance for Scotland.
