Doctor’s pioneering work in tackling prostate cancer
A FORMER Ashbourne school pupil is at the forefront of a drive to transform early detection of aggressive prostate cancer, which kills around 12,000 UK men each year.
David Eldred-evans, 33, whose mother Susan has lived in Windmill Lane since 1985, has been working at Imperial College London on the development of Prostagram - a pioneering 15-minute “short scan” for prostate cancer - for the past three years.
As lead author on the programme, David will present detailed results of an indepth study to the prestigious American Society of Clinical Oncology’s Annual Meeting in Chicago on Friday by video link.
Based on a clinical trial involving more than 400 volunteers aged between 50 and 69, the research suggests that this new superscan could unmask aggressive prostrate cancer much earlier than the current blood test, which is known for a tendency to generate overdiagnosis of unimportant cancers and provoke unnecessary medical interventions.
Prostagram uses magnetic waves that have no radiation risk to produce a detailed picture of the prostate, making it safe as well as non-invasive. David said: “One of the key advantages of Prostagram is that it can avoid the need for rectal examination and may encourage more men to have a prostate health check.
“Our next step therefore is to scale up Prostagram and see if the results can be replicated on a larger number of men across the UK. “We need more funding to expand the research and trialling which, if successful, will mean that advanced prostate cancer testing can be fast, frequent and more accurate.”
David was one of the last babies to be born at Ashbourne’s Maternity Home, which closed in December 1988. His education began at the town’s fomer PNEU School before he moved to Foremarke Hall, Repton School and then Cambridge University, where he gained a first-class honours degree.
His career has centred on various hospital trusts in London and a research fellowship at Imperial College, primarily to advance Prostagram.
We need more funding to expand research and trialling which could mean better tests. David Eldredevans