Sir, – I welcome Dr Houston’s article on PSA and prostate cancer (“We have a blood test to detect prostate cancer, so why the reluctance to screen?”, Your Wellness, February 23rd). After more than 40 years of doing PSA testing in general practice, I am a firm believer in doing same. I do it on every man in his late forties and over when I do blood tests. As a result, I have picked up cancers at an early stage in many men by detecting a rise in the PSA levels.
Women have free contraception, free smear testing, free HRT, free breast check and free abortion services. I do not disagree with this, but it is not fair that men receive nothing.
The least men should receive is a free annual blood test with their GP for a PSA and a full blood count. In my experience a fall in haemoglobin is a better guide to early bowel cancer than the present stool test. – Yours, etc,
Dr PAT McGRATH
RM Block
Monkstown,
Co Dublin.
