Conservative peer Sir Graham Brady has revealed that he has been successfully treated for prostate cancer on the NHS.
The former chairman of the 1922 Committee said he had been living with the disease for two years but felt ‘very lucky’ to have benefited from the same high-tech therapy ex-Prime Minister David Cameron opted for privately.
Lord Brady, 58, has now joined a campaign by the Mail on Sunday – also backed by Lord Cameron – to launch a national prostate screening programme to prevent needless deaths by identifying more cancers early.
He is also backing calls for the focal therapy he received, which has fewer side effects than traditional surgery or radiotherapy, to be rolled out more widely on the NHS.
Lord Brady had his tumour picked up following simple PSA blood tests which indicate cancer risk.
He then had two MRI scans and two biopsies which confirmed his tumour.
His consultant at the Royal Marsden Hospital in London said it was a small and slow-growing and recommended it be monitored, rather than surgery.
But Lord Brady opted to be treated immediately with focal therapy, which uses high-intensity ultrasound or electrical pulses to destroy the tumour while sparing healthy cells, reducing the risk of side effects such as incontinence and impotence.
Lord Brady, a former chairman of the Conservative party’s 1922 committee, received the high-tech prostate treatment in December
Former prime minister Lord Cameron received the same therapy, which can cost around £16,000 if done privately
He said he hoped his treatment meant he could avoid needing more radical intervention later on.
He was treated on December 18 at London’s Charing Cross Hospital and returned home the same day.
Lord Brady, now a patron of cancer charity Prost8, said: ‘I have been very lucky, but thousands of men each year would be suitable for this kind of treatment and I want them to get it. You can do this in a day and the likelihood of a good outcome is very high. It just seems crazy that so many men are expected to wait.’
Prost8 says around 17,000 men a year would benefit from focal therapy but fewer than 700 are offered it on the NHS via just seven hospitals in London and the South East.
Lord Cameron last year revealed his prostate cancer had been successfully treated with the technique.
It is believed he received this privately, which can cost about £16,000.
