Fears that prostate cancer screenings may do more harm than good; shocking study showing that one in six reported cases during a 15-year study was wrong

Experts have warned that prostate cancer screenings may do more harm than good as a shocking study found that one in six cases spotted during a 15-year investigation were wrong.

It was the largest study of the blood test for prostate-specific antigen (PSA), a screening tool used for prostate cancer in some countries in Europe.

The study found that these PSA tests had little impact in reducing deaths and in some cases missed the early detection of some aggressive cancers.

The results also indicated that these tests led to worrying rates of overdiagnosis in patients.

The results also indicated that these tests led to worrying rates of overdiagnosis in patients (stock image)

Researchers from the universities of Bristol, Oxford and Cambridge invited more than 400,000 men aged 50 to 69 for screenings, with just over half receiving a PSA test.

They tracked these same men for 15 years and found that almost seven in 1,000 in the group invited for screening had died from prostate cancer.

This is compared to almost eight in 1,000 men who did not have a PSA test.

The results of the study showed that an estimated one in six cancers found on the single PSA screening was an overdiagnosis that led to unnecessary treatment of tumors that were actually harmless.

Prostate cancer treatment can cause physical side effects, such as bladder and bowel problems, erectile dysfunction and, in some rare cases, an infection after a biopsy.

The results showed that an estimated one in six cancers found on the single PSA screening was an overdiagnosis leading to unnecessary treatment of tumors that were actually harmless (stock image)

Prostate cancer treatment can cause physical side effects such as bladder and bowel problems, erectile dysfunction and, in some rare cases, an infection after a biopsy (stock image)

Professor Richard Martin, lead author and Cancer Research UK scientist at the University of Bristol, told the Telegraph: ‘The main conclusion is that the small reduction in prostate cancer deaths from using the test to screen healthy men does not outweigh the potential harm.

‘This results in some men receiving invasive treatment that they do not need many years earlier than without screening, and the test also fails to detect certain cancers that do require treatment.

‘We need to find better ways to detect aggressive prostate cancers so we can treat them early.’

Prostate cancer claims 12,000 lives a year, making it the second biggest cancer killer in men in Britain – the first being lung cancer.

It is the most common cancer in Britain without a screening programme, despite the fact that the disease often shows no symptoms until it has spread and become terminal.

Prostate cancer screenings are not currently recommended by the UK National Screening Committee (NSC) as it is unclear whether or not the benefits of screenings outweigh the harms.

Dr. Neil Smith, GP for Cancer Research UK and GP lead for Lancashire and South Cumbria Cancer Alliance, said: ‘With prostate cancer causing 12,000 deaths in Britain every year, we completely understand why men want to know if they have the disease, even if they are they have no symptoms.

‘However, this research highlights that early detection PSA testing can do more harm than good – it is simply not accurate enough and could lead to some men having tests and treatments they don’t need.

Prostate cancer claims 12,000 lives a year, making it the second biggest cancer killer in men in Britain (stock image of prostate cancer cells)

Prostate cancer is the most common cancer in Britain without a screening programme, despite often showing no symptoms until it has spread and become terminal (stock image)

‘You know your body best, so if you notice any unusual changes, contact your GP. It probably won’t be cancer, but if it is, catching it earlier means treatment is more likely to be successful.’

In 2023, Prostate Cancer UK launched the £42 million Transform trial, which aims to find out whether MRI scans are better at early detection.

Other clinical trials, such as STAMPEDE, seek to find the best treatment for advanced prostate cancer to improve survival rates and quality of life.

Dr. Matthew Hobbs, director of research at Prostate Cancer UK, said: ‘A previous study has shown that screening with PSA blood tests reduces deaths from prostate cancer, but it also misses important cancers and harms men seeking treatments or getting biopsies that they don’t need.

‘The results of the UK CaP study are extremely significant as they support these findings.

‘The number of screened men who still died from prostate cancer in both studies makes it crystal clear that it is now critical to develop, test and prove new ways to diagnose prostate cancer that detect the aggressive cancers detected by PSA testing missed and even reduce the potential damage. further.’