INCLUDE prostate cancer
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Improving the Engagement of Underserved Communities with the Prostate Cancer Genetics Service: identifying barriers & facilitators and developing supportive resources using a co-production and collaborative approach
IRAS ID
361063
Contact name
Elizabeth Bancroft
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
The Royal Marsden NHS Trust
Clinicaltrials.gov Identifier
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 0 months, 11 days
Research summary
Prostate cancer is a disease that can run in families. It is the most common cancer in people born with prostates (we will call them men unless they identify differently) in Europe and the United States (US). If found early, before stage III, prostate cancer can be cured. At this early stage, most people have no symptoms. This makes access to screening very important.
Some groups are less likely to take part in prostate cancer screening. These include men with Black African or Caribbean ancestry, and those with limited access to healthcare. The gender-diverse community who have prostates may be less likely to be diagnosed but may have higher risk of dying from prostate cancer.
There is no national screening programme for prostate cancer in the UK. So, we need to find better ways to spot people at high risk of serious prostate cancer and help them get screened. One way to do this is by using genetic testing. This could help find dangerous cancers earlier and avoid over-treatment of cancers that would not cause harm.
Genetic testing could help people in underserved groups have better outcomes. To understand why we don’t get many referrals from some communities, we launched the involvement project. We spoke to people from the three groups mentioned above to learn what helps or stops them from taking part in screening and genetic research.
We found that simple digital tools could help. These tools would explain prostate cancer and how genetics can affect risk. People said this would help them understand more, feel less worried, and be more likely to get screened or take part in our studies. We will create these tools with the help of the community. We will use ideas from health education and behaviour science. The community will also help us test the tools and improve them.REC name
North East - Tyne & Wear South Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
26/NE/0022
Date of REC Opinion
29 Jan 2026
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion