Sir Chris Hoy, Britain's most decorated Olympic cyclist, has spent the months since his terminal cancer diagnosis pressing a single argument: prostate cancer screening needs to reach more men, earlier.

Hoy — a six-time Olympic sprint champion on the track — was diagnosed with stage 4 prostate cancer in September 2023, after a scan of his shoulder revealed a tumour. The primary cancer was in his prostate. It had already spread to his pelvis, hip, spine, ribs and shoulder. Doctors told him his life expectancy was between two and four years. He was 47. The Guardian

Rather than retreat, Hoy went public. He wrote a memoir, All That Matters, detailing the diagnosis and its fallout. He has spoken plainly about what the numbers mean: roughly 10,000 men a year in the UK receive the same stage 4 news he did. Prostate cancer, he has pointed out, kills more people in this country than any other disease. The Guardian

His blood is tested for PSA — prostate-specific antigen, a protein whose levels can signal prostate trouble — every three to six months. That is the same simple blood test he wants other men to be able to access. He has urged men under 50 with a family history of prostate cancer to visit their GP and ask for one, even though the NHS does not routinely offer screening below that age. The Guardian

The campaigning landed. In early November 2024, Health Secretary Wes Streeting ordered a review of prostate cancer testing after Hoy's public call for wider screening. The Guardian A year later, a £42m UK screening trial — described as the most ambitious in two decades — was under way. The Guardian

Hoy's wife, Sarra, reported a sevenfold increase in men seeking advice about prostate cancer following her husband's diagnosis. The Guardian In Scotland, Hoy backed a free-testing initiative alongside former rugby international Kenny Logan and Sir Tom Hunter, offering PSA tests to 25,000 men aged 40 to 80. Scottish Prostate Cancer Initiative He also led the Tour de 4, a charity bike ride across Scotland, for the first time in September.

For a man who once measured success in thousandths of a second on a velodrome track, the stakes are now measured differently. The mission is straightforward: get men tested before the cancer spreads, before the news becomes a countdown.