The Wall Street Journal Editorial Board Observes a Decline in Prostate Cancer Screening Coincides with Rising Prostate Cancer Deaths

Several recent articles have focused on celebrities who have battled prostate cancer. For example, “Dilbert” cartoonist Scott Adams died on January 13, 2026, after confronting an aggressive form of the disease.

While every cancer death is a tragedy , gains in the fight against cancer have been made recently. Building on this progress, the American Cancer Society released a report stating the five-year survival rate hit a record 70% for all cancers diagnosed between 2015 and 2021.

Additionally , over the past 20 years, people with high-mortality cancers and advanced diagnoses saw the largest gains. Furthermore, the overall cancer mortality rate decreased by 1.5% in 2023 from 2022.

New treatments, such as checkpoint inhibitors, have improved survival rates for patients with metastatic cancer. Genomics and artificial intelligence enable doctors to better target treatments to patients based on biomarkers. Novel immunotherapies have shown promise in recent trials.

However, despite these advances in treatment, screenings have helped patients afflicted with other cancers, but advanced prostate cancer has increased in recent years as fewer men receive PSA tests. For instance, the US Preventive Services Task Force has recommended against PSA tests for men 70 years and older. For men ages 55 to 69, the panel recommended doctors “not screen men who do not express a preference for screening.”

These policies stem from concerns about potential overdiagnosis and overtreatment. Notably , this same 16- member panel, which contains no oncologists, has been slow to revise its screening recommendations despite evidence that less screening has increased prostate cancer mortality.

Despite rapid biomedical advances, one pressing concern remains: the government could slow cancer research.

Wall Street Journal. January 14, 2026. Editorial Board