By MARTI STELLING, HEALTH REPORTER

Published: 00:01, 20 September 2026 | Updated: 00:21, 20 September 2026

People who live in areas with higher levels of air pollution are more likely to develop two common age-related eye conditions, according to a study.

While there is strong evidence that exposure to polluted air is harmful to the heart and lungs, research now suggests it can also lead to glaucoma and cataracts.

Researchers analysed 41 separate studies, drawing on data from millions of people in the UK and from across East Asia.

They looked at levels of several types of air pollution, including particulate matter, nitrogen dioxide, sulphur dioxide, ozone and carbon monoxide. 

They then compared them with rates of glaucoma, cataracts and age- related macular degeneration.

The research showed that the higher the levels of fine particulate matter – the tiny particles in smoke, vehicle exhaust and industrial pollution small enough to penetrate deep into the body – the greater the risk of glaucoma.

Occurring when the optic nerve, which connects the eye to the brain, is damaged, glaucoma can lead to vision loss if not diagnosed and treated early. It affects as many as a million people in the UK.

Researchers found that those living in the most polluted areas had up to 70 per cent higher odds of developing the condition compared with those in the least polluted areas.

A study suggests that living in areas with higher air pollution may increase the risk of developing glaucoma and cataracts, two common age-related eye conditions

People living in more polluted areas also faced a consistently higher risk of developing cataracts – where the lens of the eye becomes cloudy, causing blurred vision and, in the most serious cases, loss of sight. The level of risk was found to increase alongside pollution exposure.

About one in three people aged over 65 in the UK currently suffer from the condition.

Dr Ahmed Alnabihi, who presented the latest research at the Congress of the European Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgeons, said: ‘Every day we see patients losing vision to conditions such as glaucoma and cataract.

‘These diseases are labelled as age-related, as though ageing is the only culprit, but that always felt incomplete to me.’

Dr Alnabihi, from King Khaled Eye Specialist Hospital and Research Centre in Saudi Arabia, added: ‘If something environmental is accelerating these conditions, that changes our thinking and suggests we could take action to reduce the risks.’

By ROGER DOBSON

Published: 00:01, 20 September 2026 | Updated: 00:29, 20 September 2026

After getting through the day there is nothing better than turning off the lights and curling up under the duvet.

But such a simple pleasure may cost you the ultimate price – with a study finding that sleeping for nine hours a night brings an increased risk of early death.

While getting seven to eight hours of shut-eye is the sweet spot for overall health, spending longer in bed is associated with a 17 per cent higher chance of dying from any cause.

The precise reasons for this are not well understood.

Yet those who sleep for longer are more likely to have high blood pressure, which plays a role in heart disease and strokes, and they may suffer from more inflammation than most.

Too much sleep can also interfere with the body’s internal clock, hormonal regulation and the immune system.

Researchers tracked the sleeping habits of more than 3,000 people for 30 years.

The mortality rate was lowest for those who slept seven to eight hours a night, with 10.57 deaths for every 1,000 people over the three decades.

A study has found that sleeping for more than nine hours a night is associated with a higher risk of death, while seven to eight hours was linked to the lowest mortality rate (stock image)

But sleeping fewer than six hours had a mortality rate which was slightly higher, at 10.97. And for those getting more than nine hours, the rate was higher again at 11.27.

The Taiwanese researchers who carried out the study say sleep should be measured by medics in order to identify people at risk of premature death.

In the Journal of Sleep Research, they wrote: ‘We found that long sleep duration was associated with a higher risk of all-cause mortality, and blood pressure accounted for a modest proportion of this association.

‘These findings may have implications for identifying individuals at increased health risk – sleep duration assessment may be incorporated into routine health check-ups to help identify individuals at potentially increased health risk.’

Too much sleep has long been linked to issues such as heart problems and type 2 diabetes, obesity, poorer memory and brain health.

Adults are advised to get between seven and nine hours of sleep every night.

By MARTI STELLING, HEALTH REPORTER

Published: 00:01, 20 September 2026 | Updated: 00:42, 20 September 2026

Getting a bad night’s sleep may influence a partner’s diet, according to a study.

While previous studies have found that poor sleep leads to poor diet, researchers found this can extend to a partner’s eating habits.

They believe this is because couples who sleep together often eat together, meaning one partner’s unhealthy food choices can have a ripple effect on their significant other.

The study, published in the journal Annals of Behavioural Medicine, followed 204 couples, with an average age of 42, living together in Canada.

Both partners answered questions about their sleep and diet at the start of the study, after one month and after three months. 

They also kept a diary for the first 14 days to record efforts to eat healthily. At least one person in each couple was overweight or obese and trying to improve their diet or physical activity.

The results found poor sleep was linked to a reduced ability to stick to healthy eating goals. 

A study suggests that a poor night’s sleep may negatively affect not only your own diet but also your partner’s eating habits (stock photo) 

People who slept poorly reported making less effort to maintain healthy habits. Partners of poor sleepers also reported lower confidence and less effort in maintaining healthy eating habits, even when they slept well.

Women reported healthier diets and eating intentions than men, though gender did not change the relationship between one partner’s sleep and the other’s diet-related behaviours.

Professor Jean-Philippe Gouin, the study’s corresponding author and a psychologist at Concordia University in Montreal, said: ‘We need to consider the social contexts in which poor eating habits take place. 

‘That can involve asking how a partner is influencing one’s eating behaviour, whether intentionally or not.

‘If we want to make long-lasting changes, both partners need to work together to change the home and food environment so that it is easier to maintain healthier habits over time.’

A simple 15-minute procedure that heats up the foot using microwaves could be the end for stubborn verrucas.

The treatment uses short bursts of energy to stimulate the body’s immune system, helping it fight off the infection.

Studies suggest it can clear more than three-quarters of verrucas within six months, with podiatrists reporting success even in patients who have battled them for years.

About one in ten people are thought to have a verruca – a type of wart that develops on the sole of the foot. While some are little more than a cosmetic nuisance, others can be painful enough to make walking uncomfortable, with sufferers comparing the sensation to standing on a needle as the wart is pushed into the skin.

Verrucas are caused by strains of the human papillomavirus (HPV) infecting the skin on the soles of the feet. The virus usually enters via tiny cuts or breaks in the skin and is commonly picked up through direct contact or contaminated surfaces, particularly in communal changing rooms, swimming pools and showers.

Though verrucas can clear up naturally as the immune system fights off the infection, many persist for months or years. Part of the issue is where the virus lives.

‘Verrucas live in the very top layer of skin, where the body’s immune cells are sparse,’ explains podiatrist Alastair Oxberry from The Foot And Gait Clinic in Taunton, Somerset. ‘It effectively hides from the immune system, which doesn’t easily detect or attack it.’

There are numerous treatments for verrucas, but none is guaranteed to work.

A simple 15-minute procedure that heats up the foot using microwaves could be the end for stubborn verrucas

Verrucas are caused by strains of the human papillomavirus (HPV) infecting the skin on the soles of the feet, with the virus usually entering via tiny cuts or breaks in the skin

Pharmacies sell remedies containing salicylic acid, which gradually strips away infected skin, while cryotherapy freezes and destroys the affected tissue.

More persistent cases can be treated with needling, where the verruca is repeatedly punctured to provoke an immune response, or laser therapy to destroy the infected tissue, but this is not widely available. Surgical removal is also possible, but is generally reserved for difficult cases because it leaves a wound on the sole of the foot and carries a risk of painful scarring.

Even after treatment, verrucas can return, so specialists are increasingly interested in treatments to help the immune system attack the infection itself. This is where microwaves come in.

Available in Britain since 2016, the treatment, known as Swift, uses a handheld probe to deliver microwave energy a few millimetres into the affected skin in bursts lasting just a few seconds.

It is carried out without anaesthetic and typically takes just 15 minutes. Rather than destroy a wart, the heat is thought to provoke a local immune response – helping the body recognise HPV and attack infected cells.

‘Sometimes we see feet with loads of verrucas, nearly the whole foot’s covered,’ says Mr Oxberry. ‘Microwave therapy is particularly effective in these cases as it can trigger a strong immune response and tackle multiple verrucas in a single sitting.’

One striking case involved a pensioner from Essex, identified only as Jane, who had lived with a wart for more than 50 years but which was cleared by the Swift microwave treatment.

Swift does not create an open wound and, unlike needling, does not usually require anaesthetic.

However, it is not pain-free. Some patients describe ‘a very intense but very short little burn’ as the microwave energy is delivered in bursts lasting just two to three seconds.

Dr Matt Kidd, director of medical affairs at Emblation, the company that developed Swift, says some patients report feeling very little, while others experience a brief sensation of heat or a short, sharp pinprick-like feeling.

Patients can generally resume normal activities immediately afterwards, with no dressings or significant aftercare required.

Some studies report that 77 per cent of verrucas clear within three to six months, rising to almost 90 per cent after nine months. But despite those findings, there is still a shortage of large, independent trials comparing microwave therapy with established treatments.

Access through the NHS remains limited, meaning most patients who want Swift have to pay privately. Treatment typically costs £120 to £200 per session.

Manufacturers suggest patients need an average of three sessions, although Mr Oxberry says in his experience many require closer to six. Treatments are generally about a month apart to give the immune system time to respond.

Podiatrist Ernest Barlow-Kearsley, who has a special interest in verrucas, says the lack of stronger evidence remains an obstacle to wider NHS use. He adds: ‘Swift is promising, but there’s no big trial that’s said it should be your number one treatment. From my experience in the NHS it’s too expensive and the results aren’t good enough. If the evidence isn’t there, they simply won’t fund it.’

Could a darker bedroom help?

A urine test that can predict heart attacks and strokes long before they happen should be offered to millions of Britons, according to experts.

The check, called an albumin-to-creatinine ratio (ACR) test and which costs just £6, looks for the early signs of kidney damage.

Growing evidence shows that weakened kidneys are one of the leading causes of deadly heart complications, yet the NHS routinely fails to test at-risk patients, meaning that millions of people are living with undiagnosed disease.

Worse still, experts say the blood test currently used by GPs to pick up kidney disease misses a significant number of patients who are in the earliest stages of the condition.

This is concerning because, even in its initial stages, kidney disease can raise the risk of heart attacks and strokes by as much as a third.

Studies suggest the ACR test can, in certain cases, more accurately predict the risk of these deadly complications than a cholesterol check – one of the most well known and commonly offered blood tests.

Experts are now calling on the NHS to use the ACR test more widely in order to save thousands of lives.

Growing evidence shows that weakened kidneys are one of the leading causes of deadly heart complications, yet the NHS routinely fails to test at-risk patients

‘Having raised ACR levels can increase your risk of heart attack or stroke by more than a third, but many people don’t know about it,’ says Dr Mark Thomas, an associate professor of cardiology at the University of Birmingham.

‘It is cheap and really easy to do. There’s a good argument that the NHS should be using it more widely.’

Heart attacks and strokes, known collectively as cardiovascular disease, kill around 170,000 Britons every year – the equivalent of one death every three minutes. Lifestyle factors such as weight, diet, exercise, smoking and alcohol consumption all raise the risk, as well as the blood sugar condition diabetes.

For years, two of the most common tests used to predict a patient’s risk of these complications have been a cholesterol check and a blood pressure check.

Cholesterol tests look for a build-up of fatty plaque in the blood, while high blood pressure checks look for damage to the blood vessels.

However, in recent years, growing research has suggested that the health of the kidneys can also predict the risk of these issues.

Kidney disease is an irreversible condition in which the blood-cleaning organs gradually stop working. In extreme cases, it can lead to organ failure requiring a transplant. But for most patients the damage will never progress that far. Instead, the faulty kidneys put added pressure on the heart and blood vessels, raising the risk of heart attacks and strokes.

Crucially, it is usually caused by the same lifestyle factors as high cholesterol and blood pressure, and its progression can be slowed by lifestyle changes or medication. But experts say the problem is that many patients are simply never tested for kidney disease.

‘Right now there are around one million people in the UK who have kidney disease but do not know about it,’ says Fiona Loud, policy director at Kidney Care UK.

‘This means that there will be many people at risk of heart attacks or strokes who have no idea because they have never had their kidney function tested.’

Moreover, the kidney test most often used on the NHS, called an eGFR, can miss patients who are in the early stages of the disease.

‘Having raised ACR levels can increase your risk of heart attack or stroke by more than a third,’ says Dr Mark Thomas

This is because it effectively measures how well the kidneys are able to filter the blood. However, in the early stages of kidney disease, this function tends to be largely unaffected.

The ACR test, on the other hand, looks for a protein called albumin that leaks from the blood into the urine when the kidneys are even slightly damaged. And this means the ACR test picks up kidney disease much earlier.

‘There are a lot of people out there with kidney disease with a normal eGFR score,’ says Dr Thomas. ‘So they have no idea they are at risk of a heart attack or stroke.’

There is even evidence that the ACR test can outperform a cholesterol check at predicting which patients will go on to have a heart attack or stroke.

A 2014 Norwegian study concluded that as patients’ ACR levels rise, so does their risk of cardiovascular disease – even if their cholesterol score does not. This suggests that the ACR test may be able to pick up future heart attack or stroke patients that a cholesterol check would not.

At present, the test is mainly reserved for people already known to be at high risk, such as those with diabetes or high blood pressure. However, even many of these patients do not get an ACR test. One study suggested that fewer than a third of high blood pressure patients in the UK had undergone the urine check.

Experts argue that far more people should be routinely offered it, including anyone with a family history of heart disease, kidney disease or diabetes, as well as smokers and those who are overweight.

The test – which involves giving a urine sample – can be taken at a GP practice and typically returns results in minutes. If patients have an ACR score over three, this suggests that there is kidney damage.

Depending on the severity of their score, a GP might then recommend lifestyle advice – such as cutting down on fatty foods and alcohol – or, if severe enough, they might prescribe medication.

‘GPs often don’t think to offer it to their patients but they should,’ says Dr Thomas. ‘Anyone concerned about their cardiovascular risk should consider asking their GP for an ACR test.’

By MARTI STELLING, HEALTH REPORTER

Published: 00:01, 20 September 2026 | Updated: 01:48, 20 September 2026

If you want to think clearer and feel happier then try running very slowly for just ten minutes.

While previous research has shown cognitive benefits from moderate-intensity exercise, a study suggests that similar gains can be made even at a pace just above walking speed.

Researchers from the University of Tsukuba in Japan asked 24 healthy people with an average age in their early twenties to run on a treadmill for ten minutes at just 3km (two miles) to 6km (four miles) an hour.

This pace corresponds to a very light exercise intensity of only 35 per cent of peak oxygen uptake.

The participants also did a resting control session with no exercise, to help compare the performance of their brain and examine brain activity.

Activity in their prefrontal cortex – an area associated with executive functions such as thinking, emotions and behaviour, as well as mood regulation – was measured using a device that tracks changes in oxygen-rich blood flow in the brain.

The study found that after the slow jogging, brain activity increased in the prefrontal regions.

Executive function was measured using the Stroop effect, the extra delay in your reaction time when you try to name the ink colour of a word that spells a different colour.

A study suggests that just 10 minutes of very slow running may improve mood and brain function, even at a pace only slightly faster than walking (stock photo) 

For example, the word ‘red’ written in blue ink.

The results showed that after slow jogging, participants had a shorter Stroop ‘interference’ time, suggesting faster brain processing skills.

They also reported feeling happier. The researchers found that the vertical up-and-down movement of the head during slow running was associated with improvements in mood.

The authors wrote: ‘This discovery of the relationship between head acceleration and improved mood may be one of the underlying mechanisms through which very slow running promotes mental health.

‘To this end, these findings contribute to social wellbeing by encouraging people to keep physically and mentally active through very slow running.’

It’s the most common over-the-counter medication in the UK – a drug taken by millions of Britons every day.

Paracetamol is usually the first thing people reach for when they’re struck down by a cold, or a headache that won’t budge.  

But many are unaware of the deadly risks that come with taking too much.  

For one student last year, an accidental overdose almost cost him his life – and left him having to learn to walk and talk again.  

Riley Lubas, 20, was new to his creative media degree at the University of Bath when he began suffering with what he assumed was the dreaded ‘freshers’ flu‘. 

Like thousands of other students each year, he went to his local pharmacy and purchased some medicines: cold and flu tablets, and 500mg paracetamol tablets.

But he didn’t realise that the cold and flu tablets also contained 250mg of paracetamol. And, within days, the simple mistake would plunge him into organ failure. 

Paracetamol overdose is, unfortunately, common in the UK – responsible for around 100,000 visits to A&E every year.

An accidental paracetamol overdose almost cost 20-year-old Riley Lubas his life

The mistake plunged Riley into organ failure and left him having to learn to walk and talk again

Around one in four people have exceeded the maximum recommended dose for adults of eight 500mg tablets per day, studies show, which can have fatal consequences.

Around 150 to 250 people die every year in the UK as a result of overdosing. 

Taking too much causes the build-up of a toxic liver by-product called N-acetyl-p-benzoquinone imine, or NAPQI.

Normally, the body can neutralise small amounts of NAPQI, but in excess it overwhelms the liver and can cause catastrophic organ damage.  

An overdose can initially feel similar to a cold – the very thing most people take paracetamol for – with symptoms including sickness, vomiting and stomach pain. 

But in the most severe cases, it can lead to liver failure.

Riley, a bartender from Newport, Wales, says he had no idea he’d taken too much of the drug last March. 

He had been taking two tablets of each drug every four hours for four or five days – meaning he had more than doubled the recommended intake of 4000mg to around 9000mg.

‘It wasn’t until I felt my stomach hurting and couldn’t keep food down that my flatmates suggested I call 111,’ Riley says.

It was a decision that ultimately saved his life. 

After being told to go to the Royal United Hospital’s emergency department, medics ran tests and discovered problems with his liver.

Soon afterwards he was admitted to a ward. Worried about their son, Riley’s step-father Chris, 40, and mother Kate, 39, rushed to the scene.

‘I think the doctors were concerned it was hepatitis at first (inflammation or swelling of the liver),’ said Chris. ‘It got to the end of the day, so we went home after visiting hours closed.’

But the ordeal was only just beginning for the Lubas family. 

‘Hours later, at half one in the morning, I got a call from the ICU staff at the hospital saying we had to get there immediately,’ Chris said.

‘All they could say at the time was they were doing everything they could.’

Chris and Kate feared they were going to lose their son due to the distressing ordeal

When they arrived back at the hospital in the early hours, doctors delivered devastating news: his liver was heading towards failure, which can prove fatal within days.

As medics fought to save him, Chris and Kate could only watch as Riley slipped into a state of delirium and hallucination – a sign of severe liver damage.

Doctors then transferred him to specialists at King’s College Hospital in London, where the situation became critical.

‘By 6pm that night, he was sedated and on life support and dialysis in multiple organ failure,’ Chris says.

Up to 80 per cent of people who suffer multiple organ failure – when more than two organs shut down – do not survive, studies show.  

The staff at King’s College Hospital began asking Riley’s family about his medicine intake.

The family then realised he had been unwell for a couple of weeks and contacted a friend at university, who found packets of paracetamol and cold and flu medication in his room.

Riley was immediately placed at the top of the UK’s liver transplant list because doctors suspected an overdose.

However, damage to his heart meant he couldn’t safely undergo the transplant for two full days, during which time he remained under constant monitoring.  

Riley thought he had been struck down by freshers flu but accidentally overdosed on the painkillers

Medics told Chris and Kate the damage to Riley’s liver was ‘as good as irreversible’ – leaving them on the brink of losing their son. 

But against all the odds, Riley’s liver slowly began to improve.

Doctors credited Riley’s youth and underlying good health for his recovery, and he was able to come off dialysis and life support after a week.

‘I think the doctors were more surprised than us,’ Chris continued. ‘There’s no exact answer for why it happened this way, but they think that his health and age would have supported the liver’s recovery.

‘But just seeing him up and alive again was unbelievable.’ 

The recovery, though, was gruelling. 

Having undergone a tracheostomy – a surgical procedure to help air reach the lungs – combined with the toll organ failure had taken on his body, Riley had to learn to walk and speak again.

‘That was really hard,’ said Chris. ‘He physically couldn’t move once he’d come out of sedation. 

‘And they had to get him used to being able to breathe without the tracheostomy again. It was like he was suffocating when he was trying to breathe.’

After weeks of recovery, Riley was transferred to a hospital back in Newport, where he initially battled severe swelling and muscle loss after being confined to a hospital bed. 

A turning point came when he was finally able to breathe independently again – a huge boost to his confidence before he began intensive physiotherapy, re-learning to walk with the help of mobility aids. 

After several weeks in intensive care, followed by a further stint on a rehabilitation ward, he was finally discharged home. 

Over the following year, he attended regular follow-up appointments – including heart, liver and blood tests – until doctors eventually confirmed he had made a full recovery. 

Now, a year-and-a-half on, Riley is back to normal life.

Chris and Kate, meanwhile, have just completed a 50km (31 miles) hike across the Gower Peninsula in south-west Wales to raise money for King’s College ICU. 

The family are now calling for greater awareness of paracetamol overdose – and urging young people in particular to understand the risks.

‘It’s just scary because it’s so accessible, it’s so cheap, and it’s seen as a safe drug to take,’ says Chris.

‘I think the biggest issue is that when you’re unwell – whether you’re older, younger or at university – it can be difficult to keep track of how often you’re taking medication.’ 

One of the most common questions men diagnosed with prostate cancer ask is: ‘Why me?’

As a prostate surgeon for more than 40 years, I’d usually explain that it was largely down to factors beyond their control: their genes, family history, age and ethnicity. Unlike with many other cancers, lifestyle factors weren’t thought to play such an important role.

Or, at least, that’s what we used to think.

Because in recent years, research has begun to transform our understanding of the disease – suggesting there may be more that men can do to reduce their risk than we previously realised.

And one emerging risk factor has come as a surprise to many of us in the field – myself included: alcohol.

The link between drinking and prostate cancer has long been debated, with previous research producing conflicting results. But a major new study by Finnish researchers provides some of the strongest evidence yet that even modest consumption may matter.

Published in the European Journal of Cancer, the study analysed the drinking habits of more than 82,000 men from six population studies spanning more than four decades. Strikingly, the increased risk was apparent even among relatively light drinkers.

Men consuming just one to four alcoholic drinks a week had an 18 per cent higher incidence of prostate cancer than non-drinkers, those consuming five to 13 drinks had a 20 per cent higher incidence, while those drinking 14 or more a week had a 32 per cent higher incidence.

I want to be clear: this research does not prove alcohol causes prostate cancer, and many of the most important factors that determine a man’s risk remain beyond his control. But after more than 40 years treating men with this disease, I believe the evidence is becoming too significant to ignore.

Jeremy Clarkson, who recently revealed he had been treated for prostate cancer, has said that while he has made changes to his lifestyle, he has no intention of giving up alcohol

And this matters because alcohol is woven into British life. A pint after work, a few drinks with friends or a bottle of wine on the weekend are habits that many of us would barely think twice about.

Doctors are no different. Throughout my career, alcohol has been a normal part of the culture of medicine – from drinks after work to conferences and dinners.

At the same time I’ve watched colleagues and friends in my profession develop and, tragically, die from prostate cancer.

Of course, I cannot say that alcohol was responsible for any of those cases. But findings like these inevitably make you wonder whether we have been overlooking a potentially important piece of the puzzle. So what should men do with this information?

I’m not suggesting that every man needs to give up alcohol completely. The evidence simply isn’t strong enough to justify that advice. But I do think men should know that alcohol may be part of the picture – particularly because, unlike your age, genes or family history, how much you drink is something you can change.

That may not be a message every man wants to hear.

Jeremy Clarkson, who recently revealed he had been treated for prostate cancer, has said that while he has made changes to his lifestyle, he has no intention of giving up alcohol.

I can understand that. And Clarkson has undoubtedly done a great service by speaking so openly about his diagnosis.

In the week after he revealed it, more than 50,000 men used Prostate Cancer UK’s online Risk Checker – six times the number in the previous week – and he has since joined calls for wider access to prostate cancer testing (see panel, above right).

Top Gear star sparked a surge in prostate tests 

Jeremy Clarkson and David Cameron sparked a huge surge in checks for prostate cancer, simply by going public with their diagnoses.

Visits to Prostate Cancer UK’s online risk-checker rose 11-fold after both men spoke publicly about having the disease.

While 2,000 men a day used it prior to ex-Prime Minister Lord Cameron, 59, revealing his diagnosis in 2025, more than 22,000 clicked on it the day that followed.

A similar boost was seen after ex-Top Gear star Mr Clarkson, 66, announced his diagnosis on his Amazon show Clarkson’s Farm in June, with visits up from 8,425 a week to 51,000. It’s an uplift that has saved lives, said the charity, but Mr Clarkson insisted: ‘There is plenty more to do. I’ll keep saying it: check your risk. It only takes a couple of minutes and it could save your life.’

Mr Clarkson and Lord Cameron are among survivors demanding wider prostate cancer screening, which this newspaper is campaigning for.

Mr Clarkson has since revealed he is now in remission, while Lord Cameron also said he is cancer-free.

Amy Rylance, from Prostate Cancer UK, said: ‘So many men say a celebrity diagnosis inspired them to check their risk and in some cases saved their life.’

But his comments about alcohol perhaps illustrate just how little-known its possible link with prostate cancer remains.

That is why I think men should at least be aware of this emerging evidence and make their own decisions about how much they drink.

Current UK guidelines advise men and women not to regularly drink more than 14 units of alcohol a week – roughly six pints of average-strength beer or six medium glasses of wine. For men regularly drinking above this level, cutting back is a sensible place to start.

What makes the Finnish findings particularly striking, however, is that the increased incidence of prostate cancer was seen even among relatively light drinkers. And in that study one ‘drink’ corresponded to one and a half units.

That doesn’t mean we should suddenly conclude there is no safe amount of alcohol when it comes to prostate cancer. This is one observational study and, as I’ve said, it cannot prove cause and effect. But there are plausible reasons why alcohol could have an effect.

When the body breaks down alcohol it produces acetaldehyde, a toxic chemical that can damage DNA and interfere with the mechanisms that cells use to repair it.

Researchers have also suggested alcohol may increase oxidative stress – a process that can damage cells – and affect androgen signalling, the system involving male hormones such as testosterone that plays an important role in the development and progression of prostate cancer.

For me, however, the significance of this emerging evidence goes beyond whether men should have one fewer pint.

Prostate cancer is the most common cancer in men, with about 67,000 new cases diagnosed in the UK every year and 12,000 deaths.

Yet earlier this year, the UK National Screening Committee decided against population-wide screening, concluding that the potential harms outweigh the benefits. Instead, screening will be targeted at a relatively small group of men with a high-risk BRCA2 gene mutation.

That leaves millions of men needing to understand their own risk – including factors they may be able to change – and to know when to have a conversation with a doctor about a PSA blood test, which can help detect prostate cancer before symptoms appear.

For most men the biggest risk factors remain those they can do nothing about – particularly their age, genetics and ethnicity.

It is also important to understand what the figures from the Finnish study actually mean. A 32 per cent increase in incidence does not mean a heavy drinker has a 32 per cent chance of developing prostate cancer. It means his existing risk – determined by factors including his age and family history – was about a third higher than if he were a non-drinker.

Alcohol may also matter indirectly because of its relationship with another potentially important risk factor: excess weight.

The relationship between obesity and prostate cancer is complex. Research suggests obese men are less likely to be diagnosed with low-risk prostate cancers, but more likely to develop aggressive or fatal forms of the disease.

One University of Oxford study found that, among overweight men, every additional four inches around the waist was associated with a 7 per cent increase in the risk of dying from prostate cancer. There are several possible explanations for this. Fat cells produce an enzyme called aromatase, which converts testosterone into oestrogen, potentially altering the hormonal environment in which prostate cells grow. Obesity also promotes chronic inflammation throughout the body, which can encourage cancer growth.

And excess weight may even make prostate cancer more difficult to detect. PSA blood tests can be less reliable in men with obesity, potentially allowing tumours to go unnoticed until they are more advanced.

All of this is why I believe men need to have a better understanding of their individual risk and what they can do about it.

For me, that conversation should include PSA testing.

A PSA test measures the level of prostate-specific antigen, a protein produced by the prostate, in the blood. A raised result does not necessarily mean cancer – other, benign prostate conditions can also cause PSA levels to rise – but it can be an important warning sign that further investigation is needed.

If a man’s PSA is raised, the usual next step may include another blood test and an MRI scan of the prostate, followed by a biopsy if something suspicious is identified.

I believe every man from the age of about 40 should know his PSA level and be able to discuss regular testing with his doctor – particularly as he gets older, as the risk linked to age mounts.

This is especially important for men already at higher risk of the disease, such as black men and those with a family history of prostate cancer. And I believe those conversations should increasingly include lifestyle, too.

Of course, there is now considerable uncertainty over how men without symptoms are supposed to access PSA testing.

Until recently, longstanding NHS guidance stated that men aged 50 and over could ask their GP for the test, even if they had no symptoms, after discussing the potential benefits and harms.

That guidance, introduced in 2002, has now been withdrawn. The Government insists this does not mean men have lost an automatic right to a test – because, it says, no such right ever existed and the final decision has always rested with the GP.

But for men trying to take a proactive approach to their prostate health, the situation is undeniably less clear.

New guidance is now being developed to help GPs decide how to deal with men without symptoms who ask for a PSA test but do not qualify for the new targeted screening programme.

For me, that makes awareness more important, not less.

Men need to understand their own risk and feel able to have an informed conversation with their GP about whether a PSA test is appropriate for them.

For decades, alcohol has barely featured in that conversation when it comes to prostate cancer. I think that now needs to change.

So my advice to men is simple: know your risk, talk to your doctor about your PSA, keep your weight under control and stay active.

And if you regularly drink alcohol, consider cutting back.

We may eventually discover that alcohol plays a smaller role in prostate cancer than these latest findings suggest.

But if more than 40 years treating this disease has taught me anything, it is that we should not wait until every last question has been answered before giving men information that could help them protect their health.

Professor Roger Kirby is a urologist and founder of The Prostate Centre 

We’re a nation of drinkers – but I might cut back a bit 

For most men, a diagnosis of incurable prostate cancer at the age of 52 would come as a shock. But this devastating news was arguably even more surprising for Ian Colby.

The disease has long been linked to unhealthy lifestyle choices such as poor diet and obesity. But Ian, pictured right, a former oil worker from Oxford, not only ate sensibly but was in such good physical shape due to his love of long-distance cycling he was classed as an elite athlete.

However, Ian, now 58, did have one vice: a few beers with his mates.

‘In my youth I was definitely a bit of a lad and had lots of pints,’ he says.

‘And then when I lived abroad I played rugby and we would always celebrate with beers.

Ian, now 58, did have one vice: a few beers with his mates. ‘In my youth I was definitely a bit of a lad and had lots of pints,’ he says

‘I don’t think I drank any more than most British men my age – but then we are a nation of drinkers.’

Until now, he had never considered that alcohol consumption could be linked to prostate cancer.

Nor does he believe that his drinking was the trigger for his disease, which is currently stable.

However, he says the latest research has made him reconsider his drinking habits.

‘I still have a beer or two,’ he says, ‘but I might think about cutting down even more now.’