Prostate cancer is called the silent killer, and for good reason. It can develop without obvious symptoms, quietly advancing until treatment becomes more difficult and outcomes less certain. Yet there is one powerful weapon available to men today: early detection.

The message could not be simpler. If you are over 50, or over 45 with a family history of prostate cancer, get tested. The same advice applies to Black men, who face a higher risk of developing the disease. A simple Prostate Specific Antigen (PSA) blood test takes only minutes, but it could save your life. It’s a blood test. That’s it.

Too many men avoid seeing their GP. Some put it off because they feel healthy. Others do not want to talk about cancer. But prostate cancer does not wait for convenient moments. More than 2,500 men in Wales are diagnosed with the disease every year, and around 640 lose their lives. Behind those statistics are fathers, grandfathers, brothers, husbands and friends whose futures may have been very different if the disease had been caught sooner.

The evidence is clear. When prostate cancer is detected early, survival rates are close to 100 per cent. That alone should be enough to persuade eligible men to request a PSA test.

Early diagnosis means more treatment options, better outcomes and, in many cases, lives saved.

But individual action, while vital, is not enough.

Wales should now seriously consider introducing a national prostate cancer screening programme. Ceredigion Penfro MS Paul Davies, who is living with prostate cancer himself, has rightly urged the Welsh Government to make early diagnosis a priority. His call is not about politics. It is about saving lives.

Screening programmes have transformed outcomes for other cancers. There is a strong case for Wales to lead the way on prostate cancer rather than waiting for action elsewhere. A national screening service would raise awareness, remove barriers to testing and help identify men at risk before symptoms appear.

No family should lose a loved one because a disease was discovered too late. The Welsh Government's new National Cancer Strategy presents a chance to make a real difference. Ministers must seize that opportunity.

For men across Wales, the message is clear: do not wait. Ask for a PSA test. It could be the most important few minutes you ever spend.

Your life could depend on it.