Orchid Survey

Orchid, the UK’s leading charity working with anyone affected by male cancer, has published survey results on male cancer awareness, coinciding with the 10th annual Male Cancer Awareness Week between 9th and 15th April 2018. The survey results reveal a concerning ignorance of the symptoms and risk factors for prostate cancer.

• 22.8% of men with a history of prostate cancer in their family did not know this history affected their probability of developing the disease.
• 31.4% of men in the UK said they did not know anything about prostate cancer.
• 57% of black African and Caribbean men did not know their ethnicity affected their probability of developing prostate cancer.
• 60.4% of men in the UK could not identify prostate cancer symptoms.
• Men aged over 45 were the least knowledgeable of prostate cancer despite being at a higher risk of developing the disease.

• Family history – the risk of developing prostate cancer is doubled for men with a family history of the disease.
• Age – men over the age of 50 are most often affected by prostate cancer.
• Change in urinary habits – this is a known symptom of prostate cancer.
• Ethnicity – the risk of developing prostate cancer is doubled for black African and Caribbean men compared to Caucasian men. Black African and Caribbean men are also affected at an earlier age too, with the disease most often affecting men over 45 in this ethnic group.