Who we are
We’re Prostate Cancer UK. We’re striving for a world where no man dies from prostate cancer.
1 in 8 men will get prostate cancer. We work to give every man the power to navigate it. Whether that’s helping you to understand your risk, make the right choice about treatment or get the expertise you need to feel informed and in control.
We make every pound count. We’ve invested over £100 million into the best researchers in the world to unravel the complexity of prostate cancer, so we can give men precise and personalised care with the right treatments at the right time, for the best chance of living the full life they want.
The advances in testing, funded by our supporters – like huge improvements in MRI scans- are blazing a trail towards a screening programme. In the near future, every man at risk of prostate cancer could be invited for regular, accurate tests that can catch cancer early enough for a cure, saving thousands of our Dads, partners, brothers and friends every year.
Our future ambitions
We work every day to create a world where no man dies from prostate cancer. And we’ll leave no man behind.
“My diagnosis came too late. But by the time my sons are my age, a doctor might sit in front of my son and say “Your screening caught it in time, and the treatments can sort this out without side-effects. And THAT will be good.”
We are Prostate Cancer UK. We give men the power to navigate prostate cancer.
We’re building a clear path to a world where every man can have:
Many men don’t know the risk factors of prostate cancer. And when they do, they often don’t know what to do next. We want a world where every man over 45 in the UK understands their risk of prostate cancer and has the information and tools to navigate it. That means millions more taking our risk checker in the next few years. We’ll build on our risk-awareness work with NHS to take a targeted approach to the online risk checker, collaborating and learning with those who understand these unique challenges: black men, northern men, Scottish men, healthcare professionals and powerful partners – to get our risk-checker into the hands of men in the hardest to reach places.
Black men are at highest risk of prostate cancer and most likely to die. We urgently need to improve our communication with Black men and increase their representation in trials. We’ve established partnerships with Black community groups, and we’ll build on these networks using focus groups, events, webinars and an expanding team of Black volunteers and ambassadors to lead us. We also know Scottish men and Northern English men are more likely to die from prostate cancer than men in London. This isn’t good enough. We want equal care everywhere. We want a world where ethnicity, location or income don’t dictate your chances of survival, quality of life or quality of care. We’ll work to get there with campaigns that resonate with men most at risk, and research that understands more about the root causes of these inequalities – the genetic, environmental, political or cultural factors influencing men's health.
Unlike breast or lung cancer, there’s no screening programme for prostate cancer. We want a world where every man at risk is invited for regular, accurate tests to help catch prostate cancer early enough for a cure, with no man diagnosed too late. New evidence shows that we’re closer than ever to a UK-wide screening programme because of scanning technology improved by your support. We’re seizing this moment. Over the next few years we’re making our biggest ever research investment to transform how we test for the disease and give every man the best chance of finding prostate cancer early enough for a cure.
We want a world where every man gets the best chance of a long life with the minimum chance of unnecessary side-effects. That means powerful, precise treatments to save and extend their lives. We’ll build on the progress of the world’s first precision medicine for prostate cancer, and campaign to give all men across the UK access to world-class treatments. In the next few years, we’ll expand and inspire our research community, kick-starting the most talented early career researchers and building on our broad, solid foundations to create the next generation of prostate cancer leaders. So one day every man will get treatment as unique as he is.
We want a world where every man’s experience of navigating the disease is personal, expert-informed and empowering. We now offer specialist support if you’re having problems with your sex life, your mental health or money, and as we understand more about what men need, we’ll expand our services further to give every man personalised support every step of the way. And for many, that’ll be right up until they die.
We’ll continue to work closely with the NHS and our Clinical Champions to change our healthcare system so men are more involved in decisions and empowered to navigate prostate cancer. Whether that’s helping men to understand their risk, make the right choice about treatment or get the expertise they need to feel in control.
Our impact so far
A man diagnosed with prostate cancer in 1996, when Prostate Cancer UK was founded, faced a very different world.
Today, over £100 million pounds worth of research has transformed what the path ahead looks like for men. And we’ve built a tailored support system to help them navigate every step.
Together, we’ve achieved:
- £100 million invested into world-class research.
- 15,000 contacts to our Specialist Nurses every year.
- mpMRI scanning technology in hospitals across the UK.
- Development of the world’s first precision medicine for prostate cancer.
- Over one million risk checks, and 8,000 more men starting treatment compared to last year.
When we began, the majority of prostate cancers were diagnosed too late for a cure and often the only treatment was castration.
Over the last two decades we’ve made massive leaps forward in how we test for, and treat prostate cancer. We developed world-class mpMRI scanning technology and then coordinated a successful campaign to have it installed in hundreds of hospitals across the UK. These scans prevent nine out of ten unnecessary biopsies, meaning thousands of men avoid potential harm and anxiety that many experience with the procedure. It’s just one of many diagnostic breakthroughs we’ve made that make testing for prostate cancer more accurate, cheaper and less harmful. And it’s another step closer to a prostate cancer screening programme - where every man at risk of prostate cancer could be invited for a regular, accurate test. It’s one of our biggest priorities, because it could save thousands of our Dads, brothers, partners and mates every year.
We put prostate cancer on the map. We may have a long way to go before every man understands their risk, but prostate cancer is a much more widely known and discussed danger for men in a way it wasn’t two decades ago. Thanks to the relentless energy of our supporters, including famous faces who wear our badge with pride; and partners who get our message into communities, sports clubs, workplaces, and homes across the UK. In the last few years alone, over 1.5 million people have used our 30-second risk checker. This simple online tool has broken records – pushing tests for suspected prostate cancer to their highest point ever and giving thousands of men more time with their loved ones.
We’re blazing a trail to a world where every man is invited for regular, accurate tests to help catch prostate cancer early enough for a cure.
Our researchers are unraveling the complexity of prostate cancer. We have a much better understanding of the biology of the disease than we had even 10 years ago. Every man is unique, and every cancer is unique, so treatment should be too.
Research funded by our supporters developed the first precision medicine for prostate cancer, Olaparib. Precision medicines use genetics to find weaknesses in cancer or can use a man’s genetics to personalise treatment. This research has opened up totally new ways to treat advanced disease, improving and lengthening men’s lives. We’re getting much better at treating smarter, not harder - getting the right treatment, for the right man, at the right time. Whether that means stopping prostate cancer in it’s tracks, preventing it returning or providing comfort and freedom to live well in the last few years of a man’s life.
We’re leading the way to a world where every man gets treatment as unique as he is.
Our Specialist Nurses have over 14,000 conversations a year, and are here to offer support, information and reassurance to anyone affected by prostate cancer or prostate problems.
As we’ve grown and understood more about what men's needs, we've expanded our services. We offer a Sexual support service, One-to-one peer support service, and you can contact our nurses in a way that suits you - whether that's by phone, online chat, email or WhatsApp.
We’ve also worked closely with the NHS and our Clinical Champions to change our healthcare system so men are more involved in decisions and empowered to navigate prostate cancer.
We want to give every man the power to navigate prostate cancer. Whether that’s helping men to understand their risk, make the right choice about treatment or get the expertise they need to feel in control.
Campaign spotlight
Find the 14,000 men
An unprecedented partnership to address an unprecedented challenge. As a result of the pandemic, far fewer men were visiting their GP and discussing their risk of prostate cancer. Shockingly, the NHS estimated 14,000 men had missed out on a prostate cancer diagnosis as a result.
We joined forces with the NHS to find these men and save thousands of lives. We got our message out across the UK from TV and radio to billboards and bus stops, calling for men and those who love them to take our 30 second online risk checker and share it with family, friends, and colleagues.
Thanks to our campaign over 1 million people have now taken our risk checker and learned vital information about their risk, and thousands more men have been referred and treated for prostate cancer as a result. You can read more about the campaign here.
Addressing the North-South Divide in prostate cancer diagnosis
In January 2023, new data revealed a huge divide in prostate cancer diagnosis across the UK. Scottish men are more likely to be diagnosed too late for a cure compared to those in South East England, and the outlook for men in the North-West and the Midlands was not much better.
We called for action to tackle these inequalities, launching a campaign to reach men across the UK and specifically targeting the worst affected areas with vital health information about their risk, and driving them to take our online risk checker. To read more about what we are doing to tackle these inequalities, see here.
Boys Need Bins
Between 3-6 million people in the UK suffer from urinary incontinence. But whilst leaks have traditionally been seen by society as a women's issue, did you know 1 in 3 men over 65 are estimated to have a urinary incontinence problem in the UK?
We are tackling the taboo surrounding male incontinence and building a world where men with incontinence have the support and facilities they need. We launched our first campaign on the issue in February 2023, with a call for supporters to send a letter to their MP to raise awareness of this issue and push for change- resulting in over 1,500 letters sent and our campaign being discussed in the House of Commons.
But we are just getting started! To find out more and support, visit our dedicated campaigns page here.
Prostate FC
One man dies from prostate cancer every 45 minutes. That’s a man from each team, every single match.
In early 2023, we united football fans to change that and launched Prostate FC; the home of football at Prostate Cancer UK. With support from football icons including Sky Sport’s broadcasting legend Jeff Stelling - who announced the launch live on Soccer Saturday - Luton Town legend Mick Harford, and former England defender and current Tottenham Hotspur coach Chris Powell, Prostate FC is a team of more than 8,000 fans who are checking their risk, fundraising and saving lives in their clubs.
In September 2023 members of the Prostate FC team will embark on a sold-out Jeff Stelling’s Football March to raise funds for early diagnosis, in honour of fellow football fan and Prostate Cancer UK ambassador Bill Turnbull who passed away in late 2022.
To find out more about Prostate FC and join the biggest team in football, visit our website.
Stronger Knowing More
Black men are at an increased risk of prostate cancer. 1 in 4 Black men will get the disease.
To raise awareness of prostate cancer risk with Black men and those who love them, we launched our #StrongerKnowingMore campaign to encourage more Black men to speak to a GP if they are 45 or older or have a family history of the disease, and to start conversations with family and friends.
Backed by famous faces including former world boxing champion David Haye, Olympic gold medalist Linford Christie and writer and musician Benjamin Zephaniah, the campaign drove more Black men to vital health information on our website, increased calls to our Specialist Nurses helpline and drove national conversation the press and on social media about Black men’s risk, raising awareness and saving lives.
To read more about out latest news, campaigns, and research updates, head to our News & Views page
