Blood tests could cut prostate deaths

 Screening all men for prostate cancer using a controversial blood test could cut deaths from the disease by 20 per cent, research suggests.

The findings by American scientists call into question the current NHS position, which argues that population-wide screening using the prostate-specific antigen (PSA) test would cause more harm than good.

PSA tests are not completely reliable. They can suggest prostate cancer when no cancer exists and also yield false negative results because up to 15 per cent of men with the disease have normal PSA levels.

In addition, many cases of prostate cancer progress very slowly, meaning early diagnosis can unnecessarily worry men into opting for treatment with profound side-effects, which may not improve their chances of surviving the disease. The study is published in the Annals of Internal Medicine.