Sir Chris Hoy has openly discussed the need for more dialogue about men’s health as he pursues a campaign to aid up to half a million individuals in checking for prostate cancer, following his own declaration that he is terminally ill with the condition.
Prostate Cancer UK highlighted the significant impact of Hoy’s October announcement, which led to nearly 300,000 men carrying out an online check, finding over 75% of them at risk due to factors like family history.
Sir Chris discovered a tumour in his shoulder and, after further examination, was diagnosed with primary cancer in his prostate which had spread to his bones. Having first revealed his ongoing treatment, including chemotherapy in February, the 48 year old Olympian, whose father and grandfather both faced the disease, spoke candidly on BBC Breakfast: “I think you were very aware of your physical fitness. ” “You were very aware of your performance on the bike and the data behind that and how you felt in terms of recovery from training sessions or races but actually it wasn’t something we talked about.”
Despite the absence of stigma, he noted such topics simply weren’t considered: “Not because there was a stigma attached to it necessarily but just because it probably wasn’t on our radar.”
Hoy reflected on the misguided sense of invulnerability among the young and fit, stating, “When you are young, fit and healthy you assume you are immune to any of that. You think that is for further down the line. When you are 50, that is when you starting thinking about prostate cancer and checking.”
Nevertheless, acknowledging his familial predispositions, he conceded, “Even with family history, I had my grandpa and my dad, but actually I should have been thinking about it sooner.”
During his illustrious career, Sir Chris Hoy clinched six Olympic golds, 11 World Championships and 34 World Cup titles before hanging up his racing helmet in 2013. His wife Sarra battles multiple sclerosis (MS), and together they raise two young children.
Opening up about his diagnosis wasn’t easy, as he shared on the programme: “We thought long and hard about it, particularly with young kids, but it felt the right thing to do and it felt like we could make a difference.”
“When you have a terrible diagnosis whether it is yourself, or a family member or a close friend, you are driven to do something.”
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“I think that is why you see people in their hundreds of thousands doing charity bike rides, the London Marathon, doing something, because you don’t want to sit on your backside and sit and think `I can’t do anything here or to wait for the inevitable to happen’.”
“Instead you think, let’s try to make a difference – let’s try to make a change.”
As an ambassador for Prostate Cancer UK’s The Bigger 180 campaign at the Paddy Power PDC World Darts Championship starting Sunday, Sir Chris hopes to encourage more men to assess their risk. Laura Kerby, CEO of Prostate Cancer UK, told BBC Breakfast that since Sir Chris shared his story, the charity has seen a surge in online activity: “Since Sir Chris has come out with his story, we have seen a significant impact. We have seen almost 300,000 men come through our online checker on the Prostate Cancer UK website.
“Importantly, because I think this is what resonates with Sir Chris’s story, is that we have seen 40,000 men with family history – because it is about making men aware that yes there is a risk of prostate cancer but actually family history is a higher risk – and the fact we have had so many men coming forward in that area – I think is a fact that really resonates.
“Chris is going to be the ambassador of the Paddy Power The Bigger 180 (campaign at the) World Darts championships which is going to try to get to another 180,000 men and raise money for the transform clinical trial.”
“The reason that is important, you (Sir Chris) will almost have half a million men at that stage that you have encouraged to come forward to take the risk checker and, as a result of that, that will have saved hundreds and thousands of lives.”
The trial aims to find the best way to diagnose the disease early and pave the way for a national screening programme that could save thousands of lives, the charity says.
Prostate cancer is the most common cancer without a screening programme and “we need a national screening programme”, Ms Kerby added.
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