Doctor dispels biggest prostate cancer symptom myths

Prostate cancer has become the most commonly diagnosed cancer in England, according to new analysis, as another high-profile figure announced he had the disease.

On Friday, food critic Giles Coren revealed he had this week been diagnosed with the disease. According to Coren, 55, doctors said “that no treatment would be necessary for the moment. Just monitoring”. Last year, Chris Hoy revealed he had been diagnosed with terminal disease, and called for men with a family history of the disease to get checked.

It comes as this week, Prostate Cancer UK examined NHS data, and found that in 2022, 50,751 men were diagnosed with prostate cancer, surpassing the 48,531 breast cancer diagnoses. In 2023, the number of prostate cancer cases rose to 55,033, while breast cancer diagnoses decreased to 47,526.

The data also indicates a 25% rise in prostate cancer cases between 2019 and 2023. The charity attributes this increase to greater awareness of the disease, leading to more men being diagnosed at an earlier stage.

Prostate cancer is often seen as an unavoidable part of ageing, especially among men, but there are many myths surrounding it that can create confusion and misinformation.

Here, David James, director of patient projects and influencing at Prostate Cancer Research, addresses some of biggest myths about the disease and uncovers the reality behind them…

“One of the biggest misconceptions about prostate cancer is that many people think it is a disease of just older men, but it doesn’t just affect old men,” clarifies James.

“There is obviously a link with age. Age is a risk factor, but there are also other significant risk factors, like ethnicity and family history, which put people into high risk categories.”

“One of the