Innovative pilot scheme follows new EU recommendation on early detection

A national prostate cancer PSA-based screening programme gets underway in the Czech Republic this year, as part of an innovative government- and EU-backed five-year pilot.

The project follows the EU Council’s new recommendation that member countries should explore introducing national screening programmes for prostate cancer, building on knowledge that opportunistic screening leads to insufficient use in younger men and overdiagnosis in older men.

The new Czech national screening programme will be for men aged 50-59, offering them all a PSA blood test through General Practitioners. Based on the results of that test, the GP will follow up with: another test in four years; or another test in two years; or an MRI test and referral to a urologist if neccessary.

“We are delighted that, after five years of effort from our patient organisation together with urologists and oncologists, a pilot PSA screening project will start in the Czech Republic in 2024,” said Stanislav Kolb of the Czech Patients Organisation (AMS), which is applying for associate membership of Europa Uomo this year.

With the launch of this early detection programme, the Czech Republic will be in line with the new EU screening guidelines.

Although the Czech Republic is not among the pilot sites for the EU4Health-funded PRAISE-U project, it will contribute data and knowledge to the initiative.