MAY’S WAR ON PROSTATE CANCER

Hailing the Mail’s ‘hugely significant’ campaign, PM unveils £75m plan to save thousands of men’s lives

THERESA May will today unveil a five-year campaign to wage war on prostate cancer.

In a major drive to save thousands of lives a year, she will announce £75million of spending to help spot the disease earlier and improve treatment.

The extra £15million a year will take annual research spending to £40million – roughly the amount invested in breast cancer research, which has long had an advantage.

And more than 40,000 men will be recruited to take part in one of several key trials to try to find a breakthrough. Announcing the strat- egy, the Prime Minister will say the Daily Mail’s long-running campaign to raise awareness of prostate cancer has been ‘hugely significant’.

Mrs May will warn that many families are losing loved ones because cancer diagnosis ‘comes too late in the day’.

‘Our cancer treatments are world class and survival rates are at a record high, but prostate cancer still claims thousands of lives every year,’ she is expected to say.

‘I know we can do more. That’s why I am setting out new plans to help thousands of

men get treated earlier and faster.’ Women are offered regular mammograms to detect breast cancer early but there is no screening method for prostate cancer. Existing tests are highly unreliable because they can miss harmful tumours in some men, while leading others to have needless treatment.

Prostate Cancer UK said the extra cash was a ‘very welcome’ commitment from the Government. Around £25million a year is invested in prostate cancer research compared with £40million a year for breast cancer research. This includes money both from government and charitable sources.

Among the prostate trials likely to benefit from the new money is a study by University College London scientists to develop a blood test for the disease.

This would examine changes to the DNA of tumour fragments which circulate in the blood, long before a man experiences any symptoms.

A separate team of UCL scientists – also likely to receive funding – is trying to develop the first- ever screening technique using MRI scans.

Other research will look at treatments including a highly effective form of radio-