Former Sky News presenter Dermot Murnaghan has revealed he has been diagnosed with stage four prostate cancer and said the diagnosis was “a bolt from the blue”
Ex-Sky News presenter Dermot Murnaghan has revealed his stage four prostate cancer diagnosis came completely out of the blue while he was on holiday.
Appearing on his former network, he urged men to “demand” a prostate cancer test and called on the government to implement active screenings.
In a candid conversation with Anna Jones on Sky News, 67 year old Murnaghan shared he’s “feeling pretty good” following chemotherapy.
However, he confessed he didn’t exhibit typical prostate cancer symptoms, such as frequent urination or blood presence. Instead, a sudden illness on a foreign holiday led to the discovery of the cancer.
Murnaghan highlighted the lack of a formal screening programme for prostate cancer, stating men “actually have to ask for it rather than be offered it as so often happens with other cancers”, reports the Mirror.
Given the absence of a screening programme, he advised men of a certain age to proactively “go and demand it”.
Reflecting on his own experience, Murnaghan admitted to putting off screening, saying: “In my own case, I fell through those gaps.
“I foolishly sat in your [presenter Anna Jones] position for many many years speaking to people about this very issue and talking about men, particularly over the age of 50, men in high risk groups who may have a history of it in their family, to go and ask for this screening..
“And I kept thinking you know ‘once I got over that age I will go and do that’.
“I kept thinking, ‘okay well you know I’ll get round to it’, life intervenes, jobs, children, holidays…all kinds of things and I never did..
“So what happened was at the end of last year I fell very ill on a foreign holiday and kind of rushed back here to get treated by a wonderful health service and was diagnosed, a real bolt from the blue.”
Following NHS treatment and testing, he received a diagnosis of stage-four cancer.
Murnaghan highlighted that prostate-specific antigen (PSA) tests are becoming increasingly accurate and advocated for their inclusion in routine cancer screenings.
“They might cost a little bit more money, but think about the money you save,” he said.
Urging men to undergo testing, he added: “Once you cross that milestone, go and demand it, your GP will eventually give you one. If there’s a history of prostate cancer in your family, definitely get it.”
Murnaghan revealed he completed his chemotherapy in the summer.
“I finished my chemotherapy kind of early July, so I’ve been recovering since. We’re just waiting to see how it’s gone. But feeling pretty good,” he said.
“It’s hard but the one thing is, you feel that you are actively doing something in the hands of wonderful medical professionals who know what they’re doing, and you’re kicking back, there’s this kind of bit of a psychological gap now that it’s stopped – ‘What do I do now? .
“But I’m in the waiting and seeing phase, they can see how much it’s achieved hopefully.”
He added: “Once you cross that milestone, go and demand it, your GP will eventually give you one. If there’s a history of prostate cancer in your family, definitely get it.”
This comes as a coalition of over 60 cancer charities, known as One Cancer Voice, is sounding the alarm that the government must take immediate measures to address cancer care in England – including swifter diagnosis targets and improved prevention policies.
The UK lacks a national screening programme for prostate cancer as there isn’t a reliable test to detect cancer requiring treatment at an early stage, according to Cancer Research UK.
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