Prostate cancer charity sees 69% rise in inquiries since Chris Hoy's public diagnosis

A prostate cancer charity says it has seen a surge in inquiries following an announcement by Sir Chris Hoy that he has incurable cancer.

The former cyclist's "openness" about his diagnosis means they have been able to reach "so many more men," say Prostate Scotland, citing an increase in awareness about the disease.

The charity saw "record spikes" in traffic on its website with 5,600 new users visiting its site in the past month - a rise of 69% - and their online symptom checker page also saw a 209% rise in users.

One of Britain’s greatest cyclists and Olympians, Sir Chris Hoy revealed his cancer diagnosis was terminal in October.

The former Team GB track cyclist revealed he has been given two to four years to live.

The 48-year-old first announced in February that he was undergoing treatment for an unspecified type of cancer and at the time said he was "optimistic" and his treatment was going "really well".

But in a later interview with the Sunday Times, he announced he has prostate cancer and it's terminal.

Hoy said he went to the doctor last September because he thought he had strained his shoulder lifting weights.

A tumour was found in his shoulder, and a second scan found the primary cancer in his prostate, which had metastasised to his bones. Tumours have also been found in his shoulder, pelvis, hip, spine and rib.

He told the newspaper: “As unnatural as it feels, this is nature.”

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He added: “You know, we were all born and we all die, and this is just part of the process.

“You remind yourself, aren’t I lucky that there is medicine I can take that will fend this off for as long as possible.”

The Olympic legend also revealed how his wife, Sarra, was diagnosed with "very active and aggressive" multiple sclerosis just a month or so after he was found to have terminal cancer.

A scan just before Christmas confirmed that Sarra needed urgent treatment.

The pair have been married since 2010 and have two young children, aged seven and ten.

Prostate Scotland's chief executive, Alison Wright, said: "We want to say a huge thank you to Sir Chris.

"We know men don’t always seek out mainstream health support and can ignore symptoms, and with no national screening programme for prostate cancer currently in place, it’s crucial we get the message out to more men: ‘Go to your GP and request a prostate-specific antigen (PSA) test from the age of 50, whether you have symptoms or not".

Often, those suffering with prostate cancer do not display symptoms, but some signs can include:

• Needing to pee more frequently, often during the night;

• Needing to rush to the toilet;

• Difficulty in starting to pee (hesitancy);

• Straining or taking a long time while peeing;

• Weak flow;

• Feeling that your bladder has not emptied fully;

• Blood in urine or blood in semen

ITV News explains what you need to know about the illness here.

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