Well over one-in-three men attending the recently established rapid access clinics for prostate cancer around the country were diagnosed with the disease last year, according to new figures.

A total of 925 men were diagnosed with prostate cancer at the clinics last year and over 2,460 men were seen in total.

The HSE's National Cancer Control Programme (NCCP) says that figure is expected to increase significantly in 2012 with all eight rapid access clinics open and fully operational.

By September of this year, 1,804 men had attended at the clinics with 750 men diagnosed.

NCCP chief Dr Susan O'Reilly said the diagnosis rate of 38% illustrates that the clinics are now providing a very good service that fast-tracks patients into the system, ensuring that men were provided with their diagnosis within an appropriate timeframe.

"For the vast majority of men who do not have cancer, that short timeframe reduces the anxiety that any waiting period involved. For those men who are diagnosed, their treatment options are discussed and considered by an expert multidisciplinary team who ensure that the patient is given all the options and all the information on the best approach to be taken," she said.

According to Mr David Galvin, consultant urologist at the Mater and St Vincent's Hospitals, while it was extremely important to provide patients with a rapid diagnosis, it was equally important to ensure they have all the right options given to them once that diagnosis is made.

"Irish men who develop prostate cancer have one of the highest death rates from the disease in Europe. The rapid access clinics are ensuring many of these men are having their cancer diagnosed and treated earlier which should lead to better outcomes."

Mr Galvin pointed out that one of the significant differences with prostate cancer is that in some circumstances (usually involving slow growing tumours in older patients) active surveillance rather than early intervention/treatment may be recommended.

"Patients requiring treatment will have several options including surgery, external beam radiotherapy, or they may access the emerging technology of prostate brachytherapy (involving the implantation of radiotherapy seeds into the prostate area and usually involving only one treatment visit to a hospital)."

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