Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia (PCFA) is disappointed by the weekend's announcement from the UK National Screening Committee (UK NSC) that a nationwide prostate cancer screening programme will not be implemented for most men.
While we acknowledge the UK NSC has recommended targeted biennial screening for men aged 45-61 with confirmed BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene variants - recognising that this group is at higher risk of aggressive prostate cancer - we are concerned that the decision excludes many other men who remain at elevated risk, including those with a family history of prostate cancer or men from Black and other high-risk communities.
The UK Committee's conclusion emphasises the risk of overdiagnosis and overtreatment - particularly for slow-growing cancers - as the main rationale.
However, PCFA shares the view expressed by many experts that current screening technology, when combined with modern diagnostic pathways (e.g. MRI, biopsy, risk stratification), has evolved significantly.
Relying on outdated assumptions about harms could deny many men the chance of early detection when cancer is most treatable.
We also worry that the decision may exacerbate health inequities. Men from marginalised communities, or those less informed about genetic risk, are less likely to access targeted testing. Without a broader and more equitable screening framework, the burden of late diagnosis-and its associated physical, emotional and financial costs-will likely continue to fall disproportionately.
For Australia and other countries watching this development, the UK NSC decision reinforces the urgent need to accelerate efforts in research, risk-adapted screening, equitable access, and public awareness.
PCFA remains committed to advocating for evidence-based, inclusive approaches to prostate cancer testing, consistent with the recommendations articulated in our draft Guidelines for the Early Detection of Prostate Cancer.
We will continue to support and fund initiatives aimed at improving early detection - to save lives, reduce harm, and protect men from risk.
The decision will make life worse, not better, for tens of thousands of men likely to get a late diagnosis of prostate cancer because nobody warned them they were at risk.
If we need to wait for evidence from a screening program to prove a screening program, we will be waiting forever.
