PROSTATE CYMRU is calling for routine prostate cancer testing as the UK Government prepares to make a final decision on whether to introduce a national screening programme.

The Welsh charity says too many men are still being diagnosed late, despite prostate cancer affecting one in eight men, one in four Black men, and one in three men with a family history of the disease.

Last year, the National Screening Committee opened a public consultation after issuing a draft recommendation against screening all men. It also did not support a targeted screening programme for Black men or those with a family history, despite their higher risk.

A final decision is expected this month.

‘Early diagnosis is key’

Andy Thomas, chair of Prostate Cymru and a recently retired consultant urological surgeon, said early diagnosis remained crucial.

He said: “Early diagnosis is key. In Wales, the impact of prostate cancer is significant, affecting one in eight men, and one in three with a family history. Often, it doesn’t present with any symptoms, so it is essential that men get tested.

“Currently, you only get tested if you request it, or if you have a proactive GP that recommends it. But we constantly hear of men who have difficulties in getting a GP appointment, and in some cases even being refused a test.

“And what about the men who don’t think to ask for a test? We need a screening programme.”

Because of concerns about access through GP surgeries, Prostate Cymru has been running its own PSA testing events with support from commercial sponsors.

In 2025, 200 men who attended the charity’s events received a “red alert”, advising them to seek urgent medical advice. That represented almost 6% of all those tested.

Mr Thomas added: “We do what we can. But we are a charity and we simply cannot test everyone.

“The government needs to be more proactive in raising awareness among those most at risk and it needs to educate and advise GPs so that men aren’t refused tests or feel dissuaded.”

‘This can’t come down to luck’

Among those now calling for change is Cardiff man Kervin Julien, a Black Caribbean man who was told two days before Christmas that he had prostate cancer.

Kervin, a Radio Cardiff presenter and Justice for Cardiff Five campaigner, has since undergone surgery and is using his experience to raise awareness, particularly among Black men.

He said: “The government is lingering on a decision that could save lives. With one in eight men getting prostate cancer, we need screening. And with one in four Black men getting it, we definitely need screening.

“Many men make excuses for certain symptoms that they might be going through, and we don’t talk about these things. And lots of men don’t even have any symptoms but still have prostate cancer.

“A screening programme would mean it wouldn’t rely on men being proactive and having to ask for a test.”

Kervin said he now wanted to campaign for screening and create greater awareness among younger Black men.

He added: “What if I hadn’t gone to the doctor? What if I hadn’t had a PSA test?”

‘Without the test, I would not have known’

James Roberts, 59, from Abergele, was diagnosed with stage three prostate cancer after attending a Prostate Cymru PSA testing event in Colwyn Bay last summer.

He said he had previously approached his GP practice about a PSA test but felt dissuaded from having one.

James said: “I am stage three, so that means the cancer has spread outside the prostate but it hasn’t gone into my bones or the lymph nodes. It’s what they call advanced. Had they caught it earlier, I could have had surgery to remove it.

“Women routinely have smears and mammograms, so why are we getting left behind?

“Policy makers are arguing that it isn’t reliable, but this blood test takes five minutes and it’s a marker. It indicates whether you need further tests.

“Without Prostate Cymru and the PSA test, I wouldn’t have known anything about this and it would have ended up being stage four.”

‘It was just luck’

Swansea man Dean Hopkins, also 59, was first tested by his GP in 2017 and was advised to return in three years.

But when the Covid pandemic hit, Dean struggled to get an appointment and, with no obvious symptoms, let it slide.

He later spotted an advert for a Prostate Cymru testing event while watching football in Swansea. After attending, he received a red alert and was later diagnosed with stage three prostate cancer.

Dean has undergone radiotherapy and is now receiving hormone therapy and steroid medication. He will continue to be monitored for the rest of his life.

He said: “We need a national screening programme because it was just luck that I saw an advert for the Prostate Cymru event.

“This can’t just come down to luck or whether you have a GP that takes it seriously. We all need to be screened.

“If I’d been tested in 2020, this would have been caught earlier. I feel I missed out on six or seven years, in which time my cancer was growing.”

Prostate Cymru is continuing to run testing events this summer while urging men, particularly those at higher risk, to speak to their GP about a PSA test.

SCHOOL support staff in Wales are being pushed into poverty by “unfair” term-time only contracts, UNISON Cymru has warned.

The union is calling on the new Welsh Government to scrap the practice and establish a new body to negotiate pay for school support workers.

The call will be made at the TUC Cymru Congress in Llandudno today, Tuesday (May 19), where UNISON Cymru regional secretary Jess Turner will move a motion on the issue.

She will say: “Thousands of school support staff, mainly women, are trapped in poverty because of the unfairness of term-time only pay.

“Teaching assistants, cleaners, catering staff and admin workers support children and keep schools running, but many struggle to pay bills and have to take on second jobs just to survive.

“One in six school support staff in Wales has used a food bank. Many earn less across the year than they would on a full-time minimum wage job because they’re only paid when schools are open.

“This is a real opportunity for Wales to do things differently and reward people fairly. Ministers need to set up a body that can negotiate pay for school staff and end the injustice of term-time only pay.”

UNISON says evidence gathered from school support staff across Wales shows widespread financial hardship linked to term-time only contracts.

The union will also host a fringe event at the congress on Wednesday (May 20), calling for action on term-time only pay and further investment in public services.

New First Minister says government will focus on waiting lists, jobs, education and child poverty

FIRST MINISTER Rhun ap Iorwerth will chair the first meeting of his new Welsh Government Cabinet today, setting out what he says will be an agenda based on action, openness and results.

The meeting marks the formal start of the new government’s programme, with ministers expected to focus on improving public services, supporting families and growing the Welsh economy.

Ahead of the meeting, Mr ap Iorwerth said his Cabinet would work as “one team” and avoid what he described as unnecessary duplication across government.

The First Minister said: “This is a government of action, a government for all, and a government of new ideas. The hard work has now started.

“Our focus is on the issues that matter most to people in every part of Wales – cutting waiting lists, supporting families with the cost of living, creating good jobs, raising standards in education and tackling child poverty.

“As First Minister, I am determined to end siloed working and unnecessary duplication across government. This Cabinet will work as one team, with ministers focused on delivering together in the interests of the people of Wales.

“We will lead with openness and purpose, building trust through practical action and visible outcomes.

“The people of Wales expect a government that listens, that stands up boldly for Wales, and that works together to get things done. That is exactly what this Cabinet is determined to deliver.”

The first Cabinet meeting will be closely watched as the new administration begins to turn election promises into policy, with pressure already mounting over NHS waiting times, household costs and the state of public services across Wales.