Four common myths discouraging men from seeking prostate cancer screening
It’s the most frequently diagnosed cancer in Australian men after melanoma, with a one-in-five risk for men aged up to 85, but understanding of diagnosis is still vague. Here’s what to know.
By Anna Moore
December 31, 2025 — 5.00am
It’s long been known that men are less likely than women to voice their health concerns. They are less likely to attend routine health appointments, or present with symptoms, even when those symptoms are interfering with daily function.
Men make up far fewer hospital outpatient appointments too (even discounting women’s pregnancy-related ones) and are less likely to register with a dental practice or use a pharmacy. When you add to this the intimate nature of concerns around prostate health, it’s hardly surprising that men are often slow to present for testing.
New research by Prostate Cancer Research (PCR) in the UK has found that several common misconceptions around the screening process are keeping men away – and eight in 10 men agree that “embarrassment” about tests and treatment is a key factor.
Many of the myths around diagnosis and treatment of prostate cancer are based on outdated methods.Credit: Getty Images
Dr Reem Hasan is a GP and the chief medical officer for InHealth, the UK’s largest provider of diagnostic screening services. In addition to this, her father had prostate cancer and she is keenly aware that we need better conversations about symptoms, risk and next steps.
“Many men just put their worries into Google and that can really direct them to inaccurate, out of date information,” Hasan says.
So, what are the key myths?
Myth 1: The first step when you see your doctor will be a rectal examination
One in three men surveyed by Prostate Cancer Research believed that a digital rectal examination (DRE) (the “finger up the bottom test”) is the first step in checking for prostate cancer in men with no symptoms.
“This is something that urgently needs correcting,” says Hasan. “The one in three figure doesn’t surprise me at all as I hear it all the time from patients who look visibly relieved when I tell them that I’m not going to do one. It’s embarrassing and invasive, and men often say, ‘If I’d known that I wouldn’t need one, I would have come sooner!’”
Historically, the DRE was the standard, and at one time only, method available for evaluating prostate health. However, we now have and more accurate first steps, starting with a conversation with a GP and then a simple blood test, the PSA test.
