WORCESTER-based technology company Postcode Anywhere has donated £500 to a new charity set up to tackle prostrate cancer. Chief executive Guy Mucklow attended a Worcestershire Prostate Awareness event at Sixways Stadium and was so impressed he decided to back the cause with cash.

He said: “It’s fairly well known that men generally are more reluctant to go to their GPs than women over health concerns. It would be good to think that prostate testing in men will become as routinely acceptable and available as breast screening is for women. As a business owner with a predominantly male workforce, any health issue that can be avoidable or preventable if it is detected in the early stages, is surely a sensible course of action.”

The Awareness Group has been formed by semi-retired consultant urological surgeon David Baxter-Smith and his wife Dorothy, who claim that health care provision for prostate disorders are not very well catered for in Worcestershire. Having worked in the county's hospitals for more than 25 years, Mr Baxter-Smith now helps to raise awareness of prostate disorders nationally, including prostate cancer which affects one in eight men in the UK.

He explained: "“Cancer, if diagnosed early, can be cured and because of prostate cancer we are losing 10,000 men each year, the equivalent of a Jumbo Jet full of men crashing every 10 days. A simple P.S.A. blood test, although not perfect, can act as an indicator of prostate diseases and I would advise every man over 50 - over 45 if there is a family history of prostate cancer - to have this test. Worcestershire has been in the forefront of this venture and will, I am sure, continue to be supported by the people of the county.”

Each P.S.A test costs the charity approximately £15 and an appointment can be made for a free blood test by contacting 07817 083492.