Sir Cliff Richard has spoken about his prostate cancer diagnosis. With that in mind, medical experts have shared a warning to men about noticing symptoms of the disease
Sir Cliff Richard has made shocking revelations today after disclosing his secret battle with prostate cancer. The 85-year-old music legend revealed the disease was detected during a routine medical examination required for an upcoming tour. Nevertheless, he emphasised that doctors caught it in its early stages before it had the chance to spread.
“I was going to Australia and to New Zealand and the promoter said, ‘Well we need your insurance, so you need to be checked up for something’. They found that I had… prostate cancer,” Sir Cliff Richard told ITV’s Good Morning Britain on Monday (December 15). “But the good fortune was that it was not very old, and the other thing is that it had not metastasised.
“It hadn’t moved, nothing into bones or anything like that. And the cancer’s gone at the moment.”
The Summer Holiday singer went on: “I don’t know whether it’s going to come back. We really can’t tell with those sort of things. But we need to, absolutely, I’m convinced, get there, get tested, get checked.
“I think we, as men, have got to start saying, ‘We’ve got to be seen as human beings who may die of this thing’.”
Sir Cliff revealed his hopes to collaborate with the King on enhancing cancer screening programmes for men, following the King’s candid discussion about his own cancer journey last week. He stressed the critical nature of regular examinations to identify cancer during its treatable phases.
These revelations follow Bupa and Prostate Cancer UK’s joint Instagram campaign last week, which highlighted the ‘three main risks’ associated with the condition as they also shared a warning about symptoms of the disease.
A healthcare professional appeared on screen whilst overlay text stated: “Worried about prostate cancer? Most men with early prostate cancer won’t have any symptoms.”
She was then heard explaining: “That’s why it’s really important for men to check their risk.”
Outlining the three primary risk factors, the expert revealed: “The three main risk factors for prostate cancer are, number one age. That’s if men are over the age of 50.”
She went on to explain: “Number two is if they have a family history. So that is in particular a father or brother in their family with prostate cancer. Or the third factor is if they’re a black man.”
The specialist noted that men can assess their prostate cancer risk using the online risk assessment tool at Prostate Cancer UK, which “takes 30 seconds”.
She added: “You can even print out the results of the risk checker and you can take that to your GP. Sometimes men find that helpful.”
The accompanying caption elaborated: “Are you worried about prostate cancer? Prostate cancer is the most common cancer in the UK, yet it often shows no symptoms in early stages. Understanding your risk and knowing how to get tested is essential.
“We’ve partnered with Prostate Cancer UK with the aim to make a real difference in men’s prostate health.
“Together, we want to break down the stigma and embarrassment that can stop men from getting the help they need early.
“This partnership is about empowering men and making sure no one faces prostate cancer alone.”
Sir Cliff has labelled the absence of a national screening programme as “absolutely ridiculous”.
“We all deserve to have the same ability to have a test and then start the treatments really early,” he asserted.
“It seems to me – I’ve only been for one year now in touch with cancer, but every time I’ve talked with anybody, this has come up, and so I think our government must listen to us.”
The National Screening Committee, which provides advice to governments across the UK, stated last month that a universal prostate cancer screening programme is not warranted.
They argue that only men carrying specific genetic mutations leading to more aggressive tumours should qualify.
Source: Mirror
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