A charity analysis revealed that the National Health Service (NHS) has started over-treating men for prostate cancer, with nearly 5,000 individuals getting treated for cancers that are unlikely to cause harm.
Overtreatment of the disease may lead to adverse effects such as incontinence or erectile dysfunction, according to Prostate Cancer UK.
In the UK, over 56,000 men are diagnosed with prostate cancer annually, among them nearly 6,500 men opt for monitoring.
The charity’s analysis revealed that another 5,000 could receive benefits, blaming old NICE guidelines.
According to the NICE guidelines, it currently advises monitoring for the lowest-risk cases, where nine in 10 will have no cancers spread in five years.
Where nine in 10 will have no cancer spread in five years. Evidence suggested that it is likely to apply to the next lowest-risk group, where eight in 10 are cancer-free in that timeframe.
While many hospitals provide monitoring to this broader group, a quarter do not, leading to overtreatment rates of 2% to 24% in the UK.
A few cases may result from patient choice, but charity stated expanding monitoring may support it for a national screening programme, despite concerns regarding the Prostate-specific antigen (PSA) blood test’s reliability.
Amy Rylance of Prostate Cancer UK urged NICE to update its guidance. One patient, Michael Lewis, delayed treatment for four years through monitoring before surgery became important, stating the additional time without adverse effect was “so valuable.”
NICE ensured that its guidelines are currently being reviewed.
