Health experts are warning that at-home prostate cancer tests risk being misinterpreted, potentially postponing crucial diagnosis and treatment.
The Prostate Cancer Foundation estimates low thousands of kits costing $20 to $50 are being purchased following British TV presenter Jeremy Clarkson's disclosure of an aggressive prostate cancer diagnosis. The kits use a blood drop to measure prostate-specific antigen levels.
Prostate Cancer Foundation representative Peter Dickens said people doing tests at home "are at risk of getting either false reassurance that they may not be at risk of prostate cancer or indeed just coming to completely the wrong conclusion". He said clinicians need to interpret results alongside factors including age and ethnicity.
More than 4500 men are diagnosed with prostate cancer annually in New Zealand, with almost 750 dying from the disease each year.
Prostate cancer survivor Bruce Cochrane said GP involvement was critical to his diagnosis. "He not only talked to me about what was going on so I knew all about prostate cancer, but he was able to assess things like my general health, any family history, etcetera, like that," he said.
Cochrane began experiencing symptoms more than three years ago. While early blood tests showed low prostate-specific antigens, follow-up tests his doctor ordered led to a specialist referral. Further tests including MRI, biopsy and PSMA PET scan confirmed cancer confined within the prostate.
The foundation is urging men to avoid at-home kits and wants the next government to fund an evidence-based screening approach. Dickens said "we're hoping that all of the political parties will commit to investing in a proper prostate cancer screening pilot".