• Posted February 18, 2025

Prostate Cancer Screening Hits the Streets With the 'Man Van'

TUESDAY, Feb. 18, 2025 (HealthDay News) -- A mobile "Man Van" screening program detected dozens of prostate cancer cases in disadvantaged neighborhoods of London, researchers report.

A team led by Dr. Masood Moghul of Royal Marsden Hospital in London reported its findings at the American Society of Clinical Oncology's annual Genitorurinary Cancers Symposium in San Francisco last week. 

The screening was offered between January 2023 and January 2024. Led by nurses, the roving clinical unit offered prostate-specific antigen (PSA) tests as well as general health check-ups to men who were invited due to their high risk.

Of 3,379 men (average age: 59) who agreed to be screened, 310 had further exams due to suspicion of prostate cancer, and 127 had biopsies. In all, 36.4% of participants were non-white, including 16.7% who were Black men.)

In all, 81 men (2.8%) were diagnosed with clinically significant prostate cancer, and they were managed with various treatments.

One man was diagnosed with bladder cancer, 43 (2%) with diabetes, and 207 (11%) with pre-diabetes.

"With a streamlined and more efficient service we have maintained high uptakes for health checks a willingness to engage with health improvement measures from deprived and ethnic minority groups," the researchers wrote.

In 2020, prostate cancer was the second most commonly diagnosed cancer and the second-leading cause of cancer-related deaths among men worldwide. 

In both the United States and the U.K., screening guidelines often emphasize consulting with a doctor to assess a man's prostate cancer risk. 

But this approach, researchers said, may create an additional barrier for those already at higher risk, potentially delaying diagnosis until the disease is more advanced and harder to treat.

Research presented at meetings is typically considered preliminary until published in a peer-reviewed journal.

More information

The Mayo Clinic has more on prostate cancer symptoms, causes and treatment.

SOURCE: American Society of Clinical Oncology meeting, Feb. 13-15, 2025, San Francisco