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Prostate cancer survivor Brian Quavar was told by his GP he was “more likely to be hit by a bus” than die after a diagnosis, so he didn’t take the heightened risk for Black men seriously.
Black men are twice as likely to develop the condition, but poor guidance from the doctor meant that the 61-year-old became “complacent” and declined to undergo further tests to interrogate symptoms of the disease when they first appeared in 2016.
A blood test revealed elevated prostate-specific antigen (PSA) levels, which is a potential sign of prostate cancer. Mr Quavar was offered a biopsy to further test this, but he declined it because of the risk of infection.
Mr Quavar, a father of four, told The Independent: “Based on the odds of me being affected adversely by prostate cancer and putting myself at direct risk of infection with this biopsy, I told them ‘No, thank you.’ I didn’t like the risk involved.”
Encouraged by the support of his partner in 2021, Brian got his PSA level retested with his GP. The test showed it had increased further, resulting in a prostate cancer diagnosis and the removal of his prostate gland.
“The conversation with my GP made me overly complacent,” Brian, a train driver on the London Underground, continued. “I didn’t think I was going to die from prostate cancer. So the risk was far out of my mind.
“With the knowledge I have now, what I’m finding is there isn’t enough research to understand how aggressive prostate cancer is in Black men. A lot of the research is on white bodies.
“So my GP’s statement might have been coming from the lens of how the cancer presents in the general population, or white men; that is where we need to have more research.”
He added: “Getting us, as Black people, to participate in research presents a challenge, because there’s an issue of trust in the health system.”
In a new survey by Prostate Cancer Research, almost a quarter of Black men attempting to get tested in the past year reported being blocked by a GP.
According to the poll of 2,000 Black adults, nearly 25 per cent believe discrimination has prevented them from being tested for prostate cancer, while 1 in 3 believe discrimination has stopped them from being tested or treated for medical problems in general.
Less than half (47 per cent) think they would receive the same level of care from the NHS as their white counterparts.
Lack of awareness is also an issue at both a national and a local level, with research showing that 69 per cent of Black adults are unaware that Black men face a twofold increased risk of developing prostate cancer in their lifetime.
Prostate Cancer Research launched its “Real Talk” campaign, backed by former Premier League footballer Clinton Morrison, actor Colin McFarlane, and comedian Aurie Styla, to raise awareness of the greater risk faced by Black men.
The charity is also calling on the government to prioritise screening for men at high risk of prostate cancer, and will soon be inviting researchers to submit ideas to a targeted research funding stream dedicated to closing the racial disparity in the incidence of prostate cancer.
The PSA blood test can be carried out at local GP practices, and is available free of charge to all men over 50, but men with a family history of prostate cancer may wish to speak to their GP about getting tested earlier.
Mr Morrison told The Independent that he was inspired to join the awareness campaign after a friend, aged 52, was diagnosed with prostate cancer last year.
“My friend didn’t have any symptoms, but it was detected when he got checked. That saved his life, and taught me a lot about the realities of the disease,” he said. “I’m hoping that this campaign can make a difference; the more we speak about it, the more people can understand.
“Two, three years ago, I didn’t know that Black men were twice as likely to get prostate cancer. So, if I didn’t know then, what about the people before me? Sometimes people, and men in particular, can be stubborn and not want to go and get checked out at the doctor’s.”
Prostate cancer survivor Clem Burford said he is “thankful to be alive” after a PSA test revealed a reading that was a whopping 64 times higher than it should have been – 227 compared with a normal level of 3.5.
After he started to wake up to use the toilet two or three times a night, his wife June persuaded him to go to the doctor, and he was diagnosed with the illness in 2017.
A separate cancer was also detected during follow-up tests – bowel cancer – and Mr Burford is now in remission from both illnesses.
The 69-year-old recalled feeling “shocked” and “overwhelmed” at first, but said his Christian faith helped anchor him through his tribulations.
“It was a bit of a shock initially, but I came to terms with it,” Mr Burford, who served in the Royal Air Force, told The Independent. “I then felt ‘I am going to be OK’ because they were doing so much with all these treatments available – and, if I may say so, I’ve got faith anyway.
“Highlighting prostate cancer and getting this across to the Black community is really important,” said Mr Burford, who is backing the Real Talk campaign. “Because speaking about it will help save lives.”
He said his message is: “Know your PSA – get your blood test now.”
A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said: “We have inherited a broken NHS. Too many cancer patients are waiting too long for treatment, and we are determined to change that.
“This includes finding the best way to screen for prostate cancer, which is why we are investing £16m towards the Prostate Cancer UK-led ‘Transform’ screening trial to find ways to catch prostate cancer in men as early as possible.
“The ‘Transform’ trial will also aim to tackle health inequalities by ensuring that one in 10 of the participants are Black men. Our hope is that this funding will help to save thousands of lives.”
