Prostate Cancer UK was founded 28 years ago, and we’re now the leading prostate cancer charity and biggest funder of prostate cancer research in the UK.
1 in 8 men will get prostate cancer. We work to give every man the power to navigate it. Whether that’s helping you to understand your risk, make the right choice about treatment or get the expertise you need to feel informed and in control.
We make every pound count. We’ve invested over £100 million into the best researchers in the world to unravel the complexity of prostate cancer, so we can give men precise and personalised care with the right treatments at the right time, for the best chance of living the full life they want.
The advances in testing, funded by our supporters – like huge improvements in MRI scans- are blazing a trail towards a screening programme. In the near future, every man at risk of prostate cancer could be invited for regular, accurate tests that can catch cancer early enough for a cure, saving thousands of our Dads, partners, brothers and friends every year.
Our activity
- Raising awareness – we use our vast experience of talking to men about their health to inform our risk awareness work.
- Funding world-class research at institutions across the UK, through a variety of peer reviewed funding streams. We have invested over £100 million in prostate cancer research since we were founded.
- Campaigning on behalf of all those affected by prostate cancer. For example, our research funding was pivotal in showing how Olaparib, the first precision medicine for prostate cancer, could be used effectively to extend men’s lives and our campaigning helped to ensure it was made available for men in the UK with advanced prostate cancer.
- Changing practice within primary and secondary care. Our Education Service provides training and advice on improvements in prostate cancer care to 10,000 GPs annually.
- Supporting men and their families living with and beyond prostate cancer – our award-winning Specialist Nurse service who provide expert emotional and practical support through over 15,000 calls every year.
- Committing to inclusion through our Black Health Equity programme, underpinning everything we do to reduce the systemic barriers that Black men face – like raising awareness within Black communities about prostate cancer, and influencing policy change that gives Black men better access to early diagnosis and representation within research.
Our impact
- We have transformed prostate cancer research via the multiparametric Magnetic Resonance Imaging (mpMRI) study, which convinced the government to fund PROMIS – an ambitious clinical trial to test the technique in a large number of men. The results transformed the way prostate cancer was diagnosed in the UK.
- Development of the world’s first precision medicine for prostate cancer.
- We have achieved real world change for men by using our research to show how Olaparib, the first precision medicine for prostate cancer, could be used effectively to extend men’s lives – resulting in NICE announcing that the NHS should fund the treatment for certain men with advanced prostate cancer.
- We have made over 4 million men aware of their risk via our online risk checker that has been used over 4 million times since it launched in 2020, giving practical support on what steps to take next for a diagnosis. Over 8,000 more men starting treatment compared to last year.
- We have supported millions of men and their families. In the last year alone, men and their families nationwide accessed our support and information services 3,617,124 times.
Fundraising success
Together with our incredible supporters, we raised £43.8m during our last financial year, spending £51.5m to drive forward our mission to reduce deaths and harm from prostate cancer.
Staffing
We employ 230 full-time and part-time staff members.