A UK health advisory panel has recommended against offering prostate cancer screening to most men, saying the harms would outweigh the benefits. The UK National Screening Committee (UKNSC) instead supports targeted screening only for men with BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene variants, who face a higher risk of aggressive cancer. These men could be screened every two years between ages 45 and 61.
The committee concluded that screening all men, or even those with a family history of cancer, would lead to high levels of overdiagnosis and unnecessary treatment, while only slightly reducing deaths. Evidence for screening Black men—who face a one-in-four lifetime risk—was deemed too uncertain.
Prostate cancer is the most common male cancer in the UK, but PSA testing remains unreliable. Many cancers detected through screening are slow-growing and would never cause harm, yet treatment can bring lifelong side-effects.
Charities and public figures, including Stephen Fry, Rishi Sunak, and David Cameron, expressed “deep disappointment,” arguing that excluding high-risk groups could worsen health inequalities. Others, such as Cancer Research UK and the Royal College of GPs, supported the evidence-based decision.
Health secretary Wes Streeting said he will review the draft recommendation before a final decision is made in March.
