Men in Galway suffered among the highest rates of prostate cancer in the country, according to a new map compiled by the National Cancer Registry.
The number of average cases diagnosed annually between 2004 and 2012 in Galway was 197. However when factors like age of the population and rates elsewhere were taken in account, the number of cases should have been around 162.
High rates of prostate cancer were identified across most counties of the west, including Mayo, Sligo and Roscommon.
For other cancers, Galway did not appear to have significantly higher rates than other areas.
Dr Paul Walsh, an epidemiologist with the National Cancer Registry who examines trends and patterns of disease, said the higher rates could be down to a greater number of tests for prostate cancer being conducted across these counties.
The prostate-specific antigen (PSA) blood test can detect prostate cancer early but it is not delivered uniformly as part of a national screening programme such as Breastcheck is for breast cancer.
“What’s been happening in Ireland, compared to Northern Ireland and the UK, is that a lot more PSA tests are being conducted – almost double the rate – so we have had dramatically higher rates of prostate cancer rates here than anywhere else,” Dr Walsh explained.
“The more you look the more you find. It’s quite controversial, some people call it over-diagnosis as some cases will be diagnosed that might never come to light clinically.”
For more on this story, see this week’s Galway City Tribune
