Prostate cancer awareness roadshow is heading to Bridlington

The engagement event will take place at Bridlington Community Shed (Unit E, Enterprise Way, YO16 4SF), on Tuesday, March 31.

Prostate cancer is the most common cancer in men in the UK – with around 150 new cases diagnosed every day (55,300 per year). Trans women and non-binary people (who are born male) can get prostate cancer.

Richard Attack, a 65-year-old former painter and decorator living in Bridlington, discovered he had stage four prostate cancer in 2021 – and he is urging people to be more aware of the signs of prostate cancer.

Prostate cancer affects the prostate gland, a small, walnut-size gland found under the bladder which produces a thick, white fluid that mixes with sperm to make semen. The risk of developing prostate cancer increases with age and mostly affects men over 50 years old, with 1 in 8 men developing prostate cancer during their lifetime.

However, Black men and those with a family history of prostate cancer have a 1 in 4 risk of developing the disease.

Prostate cancer does not usually have any signs or symptoms at first. Later signs may include back, hip or pelvis pain, or difficulty maintaining an erection. You may also have problems peeing.

Prostate cancer can be treated successfully if diagnosed at an early stage so throughout March (Prostate Cancer Awareness Month) HNY Cancer Alliance staff and volunteers will be speaking to communities in which prostate cancer is more commonly diagnosed late (stage three and four) to raise awareness and improve understanding of the disease.

Mr Attack had been experiencing symptoms for several months. As a Cancer Alliance patient representative, he now spends time raising awareness about cancer in communities across Humber and North Yorkshire. He said: “I noticed I was needing the toilet more often to pee, especially at night. I put it down to getting older, and when I also started with shoulder pain, I thought it might just be from my job. “After a few months of increasing pain, I Googled it and thought it might be a water infection. When I eventually went to see the doctor, I was told it was prostate cancer, that had spread to my bones. That’s why my shoulder hurt. “My message to other men in simple: Know the symptoms, trust your instincts, and don’t put off that conversation with your GP if you have any prostate cancer symptoms or symptoms that are not normal for you. That conversation with your GP and 10-minute appointment and examination could well end up saving your life.”

Visit the Cancer Alliance’s website (hnycanceralliance.org.uk/prostatecancer/) to find out more about prostate cancer and its prostate cancer awareness month campaign activity.