A dad-of-two was diagnosed with cancer after a nurse stopped him in his GP surgery and offered him a simple blood test. Kevin Saunderson was at the doctors in April 2021 for a blood pressure check when a nurse informed him he qualified for a Well Man blood test due to his age.
The 47-year-old, from West Derby, agreed to the test, which can assess base levels of important biomarkers in the blood. He was then diagnosed with prostate cancer in August 2022, despite having no symptoms of the disease which affects the small gland underneath the bladder, the Liverpool Echo reports.
Kevin said: "Not everyone has symptoms. I was quite lucky, because I got a call from my GP for a blood pressure check, and while I was there the nurse at the time said, at my age, I qualified for a 'well man's blood test. Within a week I had a phone call to say my PSA levels were high. I had no idea what a PSA level was.
"I was then asked to go for a rectal exam, and from that exam it was identified that my prostate was enlarged. I had a couple of MRI scans; I had a biopsy taking samples from my prostate, and it was identified I had stage two cancer."
He added: "No one wants to hear those words 'I'm afraid it's cancer'. I was only 46 and didn't experience any symptoms that would suggest I had the disease, so I was in total shock. I'm usually someone who looks for a joke in any situation, but not this time.
"I was sitting in the room probably five minutes before I was told about it. Then after that, it just doesn't sink in. You're just in a blur, so I didn't break down right away. It was more shock, if anything."
In March of this year, Kevin decided to have surgery to remove the gland as he was worried the cancer could spread.
He continued: "Originally I was thinking we could monitor it, but the anxiety was getting to me, every day waking up thinking I've got cancer inside me, and is it going to get to a point where it spreads and there's nothing more they can do. I 100 per cent feel I made the right decision. For my own peace of mind, I think it was the right thing to do."
The student housing manager is now supporting “What on Earth is a prostate?!” campaign, which aims to educate men. He features in the new charity TV advert, in which actor Colin McFarlane addresses "myths and misinformation" about the disease.
In the UK, there is currently no screening programme for prostate cancer and middle aged men are consider high risk. Although they are entitled to a PSA blood test, they may not be automatically offered one.
The first step to checking for prostate cancer is a routine blood test, with rectal examinations only being used when needed.
Chiara De Biase, director of support and influencing at Prostate Cancer UK, said: “It’s especially concerning how many men believe they’ll see signs of early stage prostate cancer and would avoid speaking to their GP if they didn’t have symptoms, when we know that prostate cancer doesn’t usually have any symptoms at all until it’s already spread and become incurable.
“On top of this, far too few men know the main factors that put them at risk. This is especially important in the North West, where earlier this year we highlighted the fact that more than 1 in 6 men with prostate cancer were being diagnosed at a stage where it’s too late for a cure – compared to just 1 in 8 men living in London.”
Kevin added: "One thing I think should be done is to have screening for men. It's something that should be brought up automatically. We shouldn't have to contact our GP first - it should be standard for a male of a certain age to be called for a simple blood test to see if their PSA levels are high.
"Don't be scared, just go and get it checked. If we reach just one person with this campaign, we will have achieved something."
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