Advancements and Awareness Reduce Deaths
Cancer Research UK has released the results of new research which suggests that the rate of cancer deaths will drop markedly in the next 20 years.
The research, led by Professor Peter Sasieni from the Queen Mary University of London indicated that, with current projections, the death rate from prostate, lung and breast cancers will halve by 2030.
“Our latest estimations show that for many cancers, adjusting for age, death rates are set to fall dramatically in the coming decades. What’s really encouraging is that the bigger cancer killers, lung, breast, bowel and prostate – are part of this falling trend,” said Professor Sasieni.
Better treatment, regular screening programmes and awareness campaigns are credited with the expected drop.
Regular Screening for Prostate Cancer
Catching prostate cancer early may allow for more effective treatment, but are all the tests really necessary?
See an article on www.cancer.org about prostate cancer screening, or see a list of summarised points to consider below:
Prostate Specific Antigen (PSA) blood tests or Digital Rectal Exams (DRE) can be regularly undertaken to screen for prostate cancer, and if it is discovered, it will likely be at an earlier, more treatable stage. Left unchecked, the cancer could progress to a more advanced stage, and may not be caught in time to be successfully treated.
However, PSA and DRE tests cannot be 100% accurate, and can sometimes return a result that indicates the presence of prostate cancer, when there is in fact no abnormality at all (known as a false-positive result). The patient may then undergo an unnecessary prostate biopsy, which has a small risk of infection and pain. Some patients may also receive a normal result when cancer is present (a false-negative). In this case, the cancer could be left to advance without treatment.
Through screening, prostate cancer may be detected, but the doctor cannot immediately know how advanced the cancer is. Some patients may have an aggressive cancer that is growing quickly, while some prostate cancers progress so slowly that they can be present in the patient without ever making an impact. In these cases, treatment is not always necessary, and watchful waiting may be the best course of action. Every patient is different.
