Anna Firth, Member of Parliament for Southend West, has raised the issue of prostate cancer in the House of Commons.
On Thursday 19th May at Business Questions, Anna called for a debate on prostate cancer. Anna is a passionate advocate for better prostate cancer treatments. Her own father died of prostate cancer, and she is patron of the Southend-based charity Prost8.
Prostate cancer affects one in eight men in the United Kingdom, and one man dies of prostate cancer every 45 minutes.
In the past, prostate cancer was treated in a highly invasive way. However, there are now new, cutting-edge treatments available, particularly for men with less advanced cancer. Unfortunately, every year about 12,000 men with less aggressive prostate cancer are given the same invasive treatment as men with advanced cancer. This is unnecessary, and there are minimally invasive yet fully effective treatment options available that can provide markedly improved lifestyle outcomes.
The Charity Prost8 has launched a new campaign ‘One in Eight’ to encourage the Government to roll out new minimally invasive treatments on the NHS across the UK.
Answering Mrs Firth in the House of Commons, the Leader of the House, Mark Spencer, agreed how important it was to improve prostate cancer treatments.
Following her question, Anna said:
“I am absolutely committed to improving prostate cancer treatment across the UK. My own father died of prostate cancer 18 months ago, and I know how widespread this issue is.
“I have been inspired by the fantastic work of the charity Prost8, set up by local Southend resident Paul Sayer, who was one of the first men in the country to receive the new treatments. I am delighted to be a patron of the charity, and to be a supporter of their brilliant ‘One in Eight’ campaign.
“I was absolutely delighted to be able to raise this vital issue in Parliament, and I will continue to be a vocal champion for better prostate cancer treatment.”
