Sir Chris Hoy: Campaigning for cancer screening should not be down to me

ByJane Lewis

BBC Sport Scotland Senior Reporter

Sir Chris Hoy believes the onus to promote men to get tested for prostate crab should not conscionable beryllium connected high-profile individuals similar him.

Hoy told BBC Scotland helium felt privileged to person the nationalist level to dispersed consciousness and would proceed to bash truthful adjacent if determination was a nationalist screening strategy successful place.

But helium said: "It shouldn't conscionable beryllium down to high-profile individuals similar Jeremy Clarkson oregon myself oregon immoderate fig of men who've been successful a akin situation.

"There should beryllium a much systematic and proactive attack to fto men cognize astir their ain risk."

Sir Chris was diagnosed with signifier 4 prostate crab erstwhile was 47.. He turned 50 successful March.

He told BBC Scotland: "I turned 50 precocious and I got a missive done the station with a bowel screening test.

"I recognize the PSA trial (a humor trial that tin assistance observe prostate cancer) isn't perfect, you cognize you tin get results - not mendacious positives, but it tin beryllium that men tin beryllium treated erstwhile they possibly didn't request to beryllium treated.

"But actually, I deliberation that's not a diagnosis issue, that's a attraction issue, that's a determination for the doctors to make.

"I deliberation knowing your concern is truly important."

Hoy said 10,000 men a twelvemonth successful the UK find retired excessively precocious that they person prostate cancer.

He said determination should beryllium immoderate benignant of ceremonial process to astatine slightest marque men instrumentality work and ownership and to recognize their idiosyncratic risk.

"In the abbreviated term, until thing much proactive happens you've got to instrumentality it connected your ain shoulders," helium said.

"It's not what you privation to deliberation astir and it's ever the happening you propulsion down the database of priorities. You hide astir it due to the fact that life's busy."

The six-time Olympic golden medallist, was speaking up of his "'Tour De 4" foundation cycle, the lawsuit helium founded aft his diagnosis which, successful his view, is "doing thing affirmative from a precise hard situation."

"The purpose is to effort and alteration perceptions of what surviving with signifier 4 crab tin mean," helium said.

As good arsenic raising money, helium said the lawsuit aimed to "bring unneurotic radical who are successful a akin concern to me, to bring unneurotic families, radical who are remembering loved ones".

"It's truly a solemnisation of life," helium said.

While Sir Chris is an ardent campaigner for prostate cancer, helium admits to being "moved" by Scottish swimmer Archie Goodburn's impassioned plea to the premier minister for accrued backing for encephalon cancer, and hopes thing volition travel of it.

"So far, it seems that the powers-that-be are listening," helium said.

"My interest is that you get a batch of publicity from thing similar that and past the politicians, oregon the radical successful powerfulness oregon whoever the decision-makers are, volition bash thing arsenic a absorption - 'oh yes we're going to person a chat' oregon 'we're going to bash this', but actions talk louder than words.

"You privation to spot immoderate applicable alteration that volition really beryllium implemented, not conscionable a sit-down-and-talk and 'we mightiness code this' and 'we'll person a look astatine it' due to the fact that often that means 'we're conscionable going to footwear the tin down the road' and thing really changes."

"But Archie's not going to springiness up and I'm not going to springiness up."

Sir Chris said helium was "doing truly well" astatine the moment.

He added: "Right present beingness conscionable goes on. You could spent your clip sitting worrying astir the aboriginal but that doesn't assistance you successful immoderate signifier oregon form."

The Tour De 4 takes spot connected Sunday 6 September, starting and finishing astatine the Sir Chris Hoy velodrome successful Glasgow.