A cancer support group will welcome an inspirational guest speaker and free prostate cancer testing in Pershore for the first time.

The South Worcestershire Prostate Cancer Support Group will host Tony Collier from Manchester as their guest speaker on Thursday, September 14 at 7pm at at the Wychavon Civic Centre.

Tony has run marathons all over the world, including Tokyo, New York, South Africa, Boston and Berlin, and was in training for an ultra-marathon run (100 kilometres) in 2017 when he was diagnosed out of the blue with stage 4 prostate cancer.

Over the last six years Tony has become one of Prostate Cancer UK’s most vocal ambassadors, urging those with or without cancer to build up their fitness levels.

In March Tony was elected as deputy chair of Tackle, the federation of prostate cancer support groups (PCSGs).

The meeting is free of charge to all county PCSG members, their partners and any non-members interested in learning more about prostate cancer or how to develop fitness levels in order to take on 5km park runs or more challenging events.

It comes as the group will also be offering their first-ever PSA testing event in Pershore which is free to anyone who registers in advance. Appointments take place today (Thursday, September 7) at Wychavon Civic Centre from 4.30pm to 7.30pm (car parking and access at the rear of the building).

To book an appointment, viist: www.mypsatests.org.uk which is run by the Graham Fulford Trust. Just type in ‘Pershore’ when asked where you are from, and you will get immediate access to the appointments system.

Men over 50 have the right to request a PSA test, even though there is no national screening programme. If there is reluctance by a GP to grant such a test, men should turn to www.nhs/conditions/prostate-cancer/psa-testing

Those who are at higher risk of developing prostate cancer include men who have had a brother or father with the disease; those with a strong family history of ovarian or breast cancer and men from an African-Caribbean background.