‘Months of anxiety’: Ex-councillor reveals toll of prostate cancer tests
Retired councillor Richard Westlake underwent 18 months of tests for prostate cancer before being given the all-clear.
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.A retired councillor has said he endured 18 months of anxiety before he was declared clear of prostate cancer.
Richard Westlake, 74, was first alerted in November 2015 that his night-time trips to the toilet may be a sign of the condition, combined with a raised prostate specific antigen test.
Mr Westlake, from Exeter, then faced months of hospital visits, first for a biopsy, then for a more invasive biopsy procedure, along with X-rays and a combination of other tests, each followed by an anguished wait for the result.
The retired Devon county councillor and train driver was finally given the all-clear in June 2017 after a second biopsy.
“I was quite surprised to be honest,” he said of the result.
“I’d been expecting it to be positive, all that time. But I wasn’t celebrating – I’d been through a very difficult time, with all that testing, waiting, unpleasantness and anxiety.
“I knew it had to be done, and all the staff I met were brilliant, but it was a horrible, drawn-out experience.
“Prostate cancer is one of the most common cancers in men, and you think of all the hours of NHS time and resource going into this testing.
“If this new way of assessing patients could cut down on the number of men who have to experience that, I think it would have huge benefits, both to patients and to the NHS.”