The NHS is to invite half a million men who have had or are living with prostate cancer to join a major research programme to improve early detection and treatment of the condition.
Prostate Progress, which is led by the charity Prostate Cancer Research and supported by the NHS’s DigiTrials recruitment service, is designed to speed up the development of better tests, treatments and care.
The initiative aims to recruit as many participants as possible to improve how prostate cancer is diagnosed and treated as well as understanding the side effects of treatment and the impact on men’s quality of life, helping to shape how future clinical trials and research are carried out.
The programme is particularly keen to hear from Black men, who are at approximately twice the risk of developing prostate cancer, with around one in four Black men in the UK expected to be diagnosed during their lifetime. Better representation will help researchers understand and address differences in diagnosis, treatment and outcomes.
Men who join Prostate Progress will be asked to complete questionnaires about their experiences of living with the disease every few months as well as agreeing for their NHS records to be securely linked and used for approved research purposes.
Verified researchers will then be able compare men’s experiences of living with prostate cancer against their NHS records, including their symptoms and quality of life. The aim is to help researchers gain unique insights into prostate cancer by combining the two sets of data to understand more about the disease, develop new treatments and tests to improve diagnosis, monitor the safety of treatments, and plan new NHS services.
Prostate cancer is now the most common cancer in the UK, with around 60,000 new cases diagnosed every year and over 12,000 deaths annually.
The government has made cancer research and innovation a key focus of the National Cancer Plan for England – making the NHS the first choice for clinical trials, speeding up the spread of innovation, setting clear priorities for cancer research, and ensuring patients across the country can join clinical trials to support the development of potentially life-saving treatments.
Professor Peter Johnson, NHS National Clinical Director for Cancer, said: “Prostate cancer affects the lives of tens of thousands of men every year – and we’ve seen survival rates rising in recent decades thanks to ground-breaking research and clinical trials. It’s really important that we understand how prostate cancer affects men’s lives in detail, which is why we’re joining forces with the charity Prostate Cancer Research, so we can continue to transform care and treatment.”
More details on Prostate Progress are available at Prostate Progress – Prostate Cancer Research.