You know your risk. What can you do next?
Learn more about prostate cancer
If you’ve taken our online risk checker, you’ll know about the things that can increase your risk of getting prostate cancer. These are known as ‘risk factors’.
Prostate cancer mainly affects men over 50, and your risk increases with age. The risk is even higher for Black men and men with a family history of prostate cancer.
We have lots more information about these risk factors, how prostate cancer develops and possible symptoms to look out for.
You can also contact our Risk Information Service on 0800 448 0821. We can talk to you, a partner, or anybody else at risk of prostate cancer about the risk factors and the tests used to help diagnose prostate cancer.
Can I reduce my risk?
Even if your risk of prostate cancer is low at the moment, it's still possible to develop prostate cancer. A man's risk of prostate cancer increases with age. And if your father or brother is diagnosed with prostate cancer, this may increase your risk even more.
You can’t do anything to change or prevent these risk factors and no-one knows how to prevent prostate cancer. But staying a healthy weight – for example by having a healthy diet and taking regular exercise – may be important.
A 'finger up the bum' is no longer needed to test for prostate cancer
Prostate cancer testing no longer means a ‘finger up the bum’. Despite this, around half of men who haven’t checked their risk of getting prostate cancer still think they’d need a digital rectal exam (DRE) from their GP to get tested for it.
In fact, the best test for prostate cancer is a simple blood test you can get free from your GP. You don’t need a finger up the bum to test for prostate cancer.
That is backed up by research published this year in the British Journal of General Practice by Prostate Cancer UK’s Clinical Advisory Group, which is made up of GPs, surgeons, doctors, radiographers and nurses specialising in prostate cancer. Read the full article below.
