Source: Prostate Cancer Foundation New Zealand
2 September 2026
The Prostate Cancer Foundation says the expansion of free cervical screening reinforces the value of early detection in saving lives.
The Foundation is urging Ministers to apply the same evidence-led approach to prostate cancer through a proposed $6.4 million four-year pilot screening programme for Prostate Cancer.
“The Government’s decision to fund free cervical screening is a positive step for women’s health and reflects the importance of finding cancer early, when treatment is most effective,” says Foundation President Danny Bedingfield.
“We wholeheartedly support that investment. Screening programmes save lives, improve outcomes for patients and families, and deliver significant long-term benefits for the health system.
“The same evidence-based logic should now be applied to prostate cancer.”
The pilot would focus on Tairāwhiti and Waitematā, helping identify the most effective approaches to early detection, engagement with at-risk men and the use of modern diagnostic technologies.
“The Government has expanded breast and bowel screening, launched a lung cancer pilot and made cervical screening free for all women. We welcome these decisions.
“But with more than 4,000 men diagnosed with prostate cancer every year and more than 750 deaths annually, it’s fair to ask: how about one for the blokes, Minister?
“A four-year pilot would lay the groundwork for an eventual national screening programme which would save lives and reduce the heavy toll of the most commonly diagnosed cancer in New Zealand men.”