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Cancer tests not a priority for men

Jun 28, 2010 | Staff | The Border Mail

One in three older Australian men have never been screened for any type of cancer, a Queensland study has revealed.

And those who are screened are more inclined to get the cancer tests least likely to save lives and limit disease, according to the report in the Medical Journal of Australia.

The survey of men aged 50 to 75 found 36 per cent had never been checked for cancer of the bowel, skin or prostate, the three primary cancer checks available to men.

The worst "offenders" were men who were non-white, single, smokers and in the younger 50 to 64 age group without any private health insurance.

Of the 2300 interviewed, only 15 per cent had been screened for bowel cancer despite this test being the most reliable cancer detector for men.

About 45 per cent had a whole-body examination for skin cancers and half had undergone the standard prostate-specific antigen test for prostate cancer, both regarded to be less reliable.

Dr Monika Janda, a senior health research fellow at Queensland University of Technology, said that it appeared males were more aware of the risks of both prostate and skin cancer.

Results for these tests had not been strong enough to win placement on a national screening schedule, but publicity, low cost and the ease of the procedures act to encourage men, Dr Janda said.