2 hours ago
2
Former Premier League goalkeeper Shaka Hislop says it is "alarming" that tests for prostate cancer are not "regular and "standardised" in the United Kingdom.
The 56-year-old was diagnosed with the disease in 2024 after he requested a prostate-specific antigen (PSA) blood test during his annual medical examination in the United States.
Routine PSA testing is not offered by the National Health Service in the United Kingdom, with the screening usually only provided if you are over 50 or if other symptoms are identified.
According to research from Prostate Cancer UK, one in eight males will be diagnosed with the disease at some point in their life.
In black males, meanwhile, that risk is as high as one in four.
The former Trinidad and Tobago keeper - who now lives in the United States - believes the current testing protocol for the disease is flawed and needs changing, especially with cancer's rising prominence in certain ethnic communities.
Speaking to BBC Radio 5 Live's Breakfast programme, Hislop said: "I honestly can't believe that it is still a thing given all we know of prostate cancer and its prominence, particularly in the minority community.
"So, to have that not be a regular and standardised test as offered to people regardless of whether they have any family history or not, I find alarming.
"I have no history of prostate cancer in my family yet here I am having been diagnosed and been treated for it."
Since his diagnosis, Hislop has tried to approach the prostate cancer with the same "fight" he had during a professional career that spanned six clubs in England, including West Ham and Newcastle.
But it has been difficult for his wife to deal with because of an "emotional history" with the disease.
"My father‑in‑law died of prostate cancer, so I can't imagine what my wife was going through when she heard my news, knowing her emotional history with prostate cancer, having to deal with that and still be strong for me," said Hislop.
"For me, it was slightly different in that I understand why they say fight cancer, because that was the only emotion I felt: 'All right, this is a fight.' And that's exactly the way I saw it.
"This was me against cancer - or me and a surgical team against cancer. That was my mindset. I never felt beaten, I never felt demoralised. I never felt sorry. This was just another fight in my life.
"Much the same way I kind of approached a football game, where you focus solely on that.
"It's the only thing that mattered and that was my entire mindset throughout.
"I know from speaking to people who've been diagnosed with prostate cancer that the initial emotional gut punch is tough.
"But I processed it differently. I just felt that this was a fight. Here we go. Let's, you know, put the gloves on and have a go at this."
'Cancer can affect anyone... but it's not a life sentence'
Hislop is not the first former professional athlete to urge the NHS to change its testing regime.
In 2024, six-time Olympic gold medalist Sir Chris Hoy told the BBC it would be a "no-brainier" to lower the age that males are eligible to request PSA tests.
The previous year, Hoy, 49, was diagnosed with prostate cancer which had spread to his bones. He was told he had between two and four years to live.
In November 2025, the UK National Screening Committee decided against recommending mass screening on the NHS for prostate cancer, saying the main screening test for prostate cancer is "not very reliable" and as a result, can lead to "over-diagnosis and unnecessary treatment".
Speaking to Naga Munchetty on BBC Radio 5 Live on Tuesday, health secretary Wes Streeting said the government is "still considering and weighing up the evidence."
"It's not done and dusted," he added. "On one hand we know there are massive health inequalities in this space, for black men in particular. On the other hand what we wouldn't want, in pursuit of expanding treatment, is to end up in another situation where we've got a bunch of men walking around impotent or incontinent because we've over-treated or unnecessarily treated."
Hislop is hoping that by ex-athletes documenting their battles against prostate cancer, it will increase the "education" around diagnosis.
"Cancer can affect anyone," added Hislop. "The earlier you catch it - whatever the cancer is - the better your chance of survival. So knowledge is key here. Knowledge around your own health is absolutely key.
"The other side to that is, if and when you do get that cancer diagnosis, that does not mean it's the end of life. That is not a life sentence.
"If you catch it early enough, and again this goes back to the education around it, around early testing, you can still live a full and very long life. That's certainly my expectation now.
"When the likes of Sir Chris Hoy, who again, keeping himself in shape, former athlete, is not caught early enough, the diagnosis can be very dire.
"So there are two sides to this: education around who can get cancer - and the short answer to that is anyone - and then just recognising that you're part of that group of anyone, and getting tested for it, because the earlier you catch it, the better your chances of living as full a life as ever before.
"So those two things I think are important to know, to understand, to recognise and to speak about."
This interview is part of BBC Radio 5 Live's You, Me and the Big C legacy day, and you can listen to a brand new episode of the You, Me and the Big C podcast - now available on BBC Sounds.
