Breaking the Silence: Raising Prostate Cancer Awareness in Black Men
Dr Eva McGrowder, Senior Trial Manager, The Institute of Cancer Research, shares insights on the increased risk of prostate cancer for Black men below.
Black men have a higher risk of dying from prostate cancer due to several factors, many of which are interconnected and complex. Firstly, Black men are often diagnosed with prostate cancer at more advanced stages, which limits treatment options and decreases survival rates. This delay can be due to a variety of reasons, including lack of awareness, lower rates of screening, and limited access to healthcare resources.
Many Black men may not also fully understand their risk for prostate cancer or may be misinformed about the importance of early screening. This can lead to delays in seeking medical attention or in receiving regular screenings, both of which are crucial for early detection and better outcomes.
Lastly, structural barriers such as lack of access to healthcare and mistrust in medical institutions can prevent Black men from receiving timely screenings, preventive care, and treatment. These disparities contribute to poorer overall outcomes.
I am therefore passionate about raising awareness of prostate cancer risk to the Black community through taking part in charity events, speaking at community group meetings; empowering men, wives and younger people to seek further help by at least starting conversations about health within their families, with friends, and their healthcare professionals. Where possible, discussions about their family history should be shared so that younger generations are made aware of their risk and can therefore decide to be closely monitored by their healthcare professionals due to their increased risk.
In the UK, there is inspirational work being done by several Black men who have set up support groups within their communities and across the country following their prostate cancer diagnoses. These men are dedicating their lives to raise awareness of the disease within the Black community. They share their personal stories of their cancer journey, the mental health impact of receiving a diagnosis and the impact of the treatment or surgery they had, on their quality of life, and the difficulties they faced navigating the clinical pathway. By sharing all of this, they find ways to help and support others who perhaps have recently been diagnosed to ensure that they do not face their cancer journeys alone, but to allow others like them to be there and navigate with them what appears at times to be a clinical and personal maze of information.
Diversity in Prostate Cancer PROMS Study
Men of Black African and Black African-Caribbean ancestry are also notably underrepresented in prostate cancer research and in Patient Reported Outcomes Measures (PROMs) as well as Patient Reported Experience Measures (PREMs), despite being at greater risk of developing the disease and a greater risk of dying from it.
This underrepresentation stems from historical and systemic barriers, including mistrust in healthcare systems, lack of targeted outreach, and insufficient culturally sensitive research frameworks.
I am excited to be working alongside the EAU Patient Office in finding ways to ensure diversity and inclusion in PROMs so that guidelines can be set that meet the needs of everyone irrespective of their race. The EAU Patient Office is working closely with other organisations, including The Institute of Cancer Research to design a PROMs Study involving Black men of African and African-Caribbean heritage. Stakeholders include Cancer Black Care (CBC), CanSurvive UK, Cancer Don't Let It Win (CDLIW), Cancer UK Salone, the Errol McKellar Foundation, Friends of Caswell Thompson (FOCT), the Latin American Cooperative Oncology Group (LACOG), the Prostate Cancer Foundation Suriname, the Prostate Health Education Network (PHEN), The Rose Thompson Foundation, and ZERO Prostate Cancer. These organisations provide support networks and work closely with us to create culturally sensitive and relevant content while helping disseminate the survey to their members.
A Roundtable not just for patients…
It is also great privilege to be chairing this year’s roundtable session entitled ‘Championing Black health equity in prostate cancer’ at this year’s EAU25 congress, bringing together advocates for those voices that aren’t often heard, but also having both patients and clinicians in the same room to hear & share learnings on what more can be done to better support and improve outcomes for this underrepresented group.
This roundtable will feature guest speakers who are experts in tackling Black men’s health inequalities, including: Professor James N’Dow (Director of the Academic Urology Unit, University of Aberdeen, UK), Mr Oliver Kemp (Chief Executive Officer, Prostate Cancer Research, UK), Ms Amy Rylance, (Assistant Director of Health Improvement, Prostate Cancer UK, UK); Mr Keith Morgan (Associate Director of Black Health Equity, Prostate Cancer UK, UK), Mr Jeff Thompson (Prostate Cancer Survivor and Founder of Cancer Don’t Let It Win, UK), and Ms Shelby Moneer (Vice President, Patient Programs & Education, ZERO Prostate Cancer, USA).
Join us at the 40th Annual European Association of Urology Congress (EAU25) in Madrid, Spain, 21 – 24 March 2025. You can view the full EAU25 programme here.