David Cameron suffered from prostate cancer. The revelations of the former British Prime Minister
David Cameron, Photo: Thomas Krych / Zuma Press / Profimedia Images
Former British Prime Minister David Cameron, aged 59, revealed to the Times that he was treated for prostate cancer, according to the BBC, quoted by News.ro.
He discovered he had prostate cancer after his wife, inspired by a BBC radio interview, insisted he go for a check-up. In the interview entrepreneur Nick Jones campaigned for more men to get tested after he himself was diagnosed.
David Cameron was diagnosed after undergoing several tests this year. He did a PSA test (which shows the protein level), followed by an MRI scan and a biopsy.
He was then treated with focal therapy, which targets the area where the tumor is, using methods such as ultrasound waves to destroy cancer cells.
“I don't particularly like to discuss my personal intimate health issues, but I feel like I should,” Cameron said. “Let's be honest. Men aren't very good at talking about their health. We tend to put things off.”
Cameron, Conservative prime minister from 2010 to 2016 and later foreign secretary in Rishi Sunak's government, told the Times: “I'd be remiss if I didn't say I had that experience. I had a scan. It helped me find something that was wrong. It gave me a chance to sort it out.”
Prostate cancer is the most common type of cancer in men in the UK, with around 55,000 new cases each year.
Around one in eight men will develop prostate cancer in their lifetime, and research shows it has overtaken breast cancer as the most common form of cancer diagnosed in the UK, according to Prostate Cancer UK.
There is currently no prostate cancer screening program in this country because of concerns about the accuracy of PSA tests. But the UK has started a major prostate cancer screening trial. Its purpose is to find the best method of detecting the disease.
