Warning over rapid at-home prostate tests

At-home tests for men disquieted astir prostate crab tin springiness inconsistent and inaccurate results, BBC News has found.

The tests, which lucifer a Covid lateral travel strip, crook affirmative if a precocious level of a macromolecule called PSA is detected successful a driblet of blood.

Of 5 accelerated tests analysed by the BBC, 1 did not work, 3 were antagonistic oregon all-clear, but 1 returned a mendacious affirmative effect - each from the aforesaid humor sample.

Prostate Cancer UK said it had important concerns astir the merchantability of the tests fixed their "questionable accuracy" and the lack of a doc to construe the results.

There is nary nationalist prostate crab screening programme successful the UK, dissimilar for breast, bowel and cervical cancer.

Instead, the onus is connected men to petition a humor trial from their GP once they are implicit 50 years old, oregon from 45 for higher hazard groups.

That NHS test, which is processed successful a laboratory, measures the level of PSA released by the prostate, a tiny gland progressive successful the accumulation of semen.

A precocious PSA level does not mean you person crab but is simply a informing motion which tin past pb to further scans and tests to regularisation retired the disease.

PSA levels tin beryllium precocious for a fig of different reasons - including an infection, caller vigorous workout oregon enactment - oregon successful immoderate uncommon cases stay mean contempt cancer.

Google hunt information suggests involvement successful investigating has risen sharply since the Olympic cyclist Sir Chris Hoy went nationalist with his ain diagnosis successful October 2024.

Dozens of companies present merchantability self-testing kits designed to measurement PSA levels.

They are disposable online and from immoderate pharmacies and convenience stores with prices from £6 to £95.

They travel successful 2 main types:

• tests successful which a humor illustration is taken astatine location and posted to a backstage laboratory for analysis
• rapid tests which springiness a effect successful minutes and show a acheronian enactment if PSA is detected supra a definite level

The BBC analysed 5 accelerated tests each bought online from antithetic companies, utilizing a humor illustration taken connected the aforesaid day.

The UK medicines regulator, the MHRA, says successful its guidance that over-the-counter PSA kits are "not a reliable indicator of prostate cancer" and indispensable not "claim to observe cancer".

Instead, at-home tests are often marketed arsenic a mode to "screen" for the illness oregon "assess prostate crab risk", connection the regulator says would beryllium allowed nether the existent rules.

One of the location tests ordered by the BBC besides arrived successful packaging and with instructions intelligibly marked "for nonrecreational usage only".

For idiosyncratic with nary aesculapian experience, the kits tin beryllium hard to use.

A disposable lancet indispensable pierce the skin, earlier drops of humor tin beryllium sucked into a pipette, mixed with a chemic and placed successful the trial cassette.

Of the 5 kits analysed by the BBC, 1 did not nutrient a readable result; 3 came backmost each clear; but 1 did amusement a coagulated acheronian line, indicating a PSA level supra 4.0 ug/l.

A backstage humor trial taken the aforesaid time and sent to a laboratory showed a overmuch little speechmaking of 0.27 ug/l.

"As your acquisition shows, these accelerated tests look to person questionable accuracy," says Amy Rylance, adjunct manager of wellness betterment astatine Prostate Cancer UK.

"That's a large occupation due to the fact that they tin falsely reassure radical who truly bash person elevated levels of PSA and should question further testing, oregon they tin origin undue interest among radical who are perfectly fine."

Online reviews look to carnivore that out.

In one, a lawsuit posted that helium was "really scared" aft 2 accelerated location tests indicated a precocious PSA level. A aboriginal NHS trial showed his speechmaking was normal.

In different one-star review, a pistillate wrote that her hubby took 2 location tests for "peace of mind" and some were negative. An NHS humor trial past showed precocious levels of PSA and helium was diagnosed with signifier 4 prostate cancer.

The British In Vitro Diagnostics Association, which represents the humor investigating industry, says that portion location tests are due successful galore circumstances, "this peculiar benignant of [PSA] trial whitethorn not springiness an close denotation of prostate wellness erstwhile taken extracurricular the NHS".

Instead it says men acrophobic they whitethorn person crab should spot their GP.

In the NHS, doctors often usage PSA investigating arsenic portion of a wider consultation astir prostate health, bringing successful different hazard factors similar age, ethnicity and household history.

Dr Sam Merriel, a GP and prostate crab researcher astatine the University of Manchester, says a afloat NHS laboratory trial tin springiness a acold much elaborate representation than a inexpensive location kit that is either affirmative oregon negative.

"The existent PSA speechmaking is truly important to recognize because, arsenic a GP, if I saw a PSA of 4.0 I'd beryllium treating that precise otherwise from a PSA of 400," helium adds.

"You conscionable don't get that level of accusation from a accelerated location test, truthful patients mightiness not get the afloat picture."

Prostate Cancer UK describes the maturation of location investigating arsenic "the grounds of a wider problem".

"Too galore men inactive don't realise they tin entree tests done a GP and the guidelines for doctors are dangerously outdated," says Amy Rylance from the charity.

Sir Chris Hoy has been calling for the property to beryllium lowered astatine which those astatine higher risk, specified arsenic achromatic men oregon those with a household history, tin inquire their GP for PSA testing.

The authorities says existent guidelines should not halt doctors from offering a trial nether the property of 50, but critics accidental the rules are unclear and determination are immense variations successful diagnosis rates betwixt GP surgeries.

Prostate Cancer UK has besides been calling for a alteration to let medics to proactively speech to higher hazard patients astir the pros and cons of investigating alternatively of waiting for them to travel forward.

A spokesperson for the Department of Health says it has asked the UK National Screening Committee, which advises the NHS, to reappraisal the grounds connected testing, with a effect expected aboriginal this year.

"Prostate crab patients are waiting excessively agelong for diagnosis and attraction but done our National Cancer Plan we volition alteration the mode we dainty cancer," helium added.