South Asian men share experiences to support prostate cancer research

A recent community workshop brought together South Asian men in Bristol to talk openly about prostate cancer – a topic often described as taboo in their communities.

The event, held at Wellspring Settlement near the University of Bristol’s Barton Hill micro-campus, was organised in collaboration  with community partners CAAFI Health and funded through the University of Bristol Civic Connections award, secured under the leadership of Dr Julia Wade, Senior Lecturer in Qualitative Health Science.

It set out to raise awareness of prostate cancer, encourage conversations, and gather feedback to inform future research.

Creating a safe space

The workshop began with a talk from Professor Richard Martin, Associate Pro Vice Chancellor (Research & Innovation) and Professor of Clinical Epidemiology, who has specialist expertise in prostate cancer epidemiology. He shared key facts about prostate cancer risk, screening and treatment, generating lots of questions and comments from those attending. This was followed by group discussions, led by University of Bristol scholarship funded PhD student Aiman Abbasi, on how conversations about prostate cancer could be made easier within their communities.

One participant explained:

“It’s very much a taboo subject in our community.”

Others agreed but said that community-focused sessions like this helped them feel “more confident to talk freely” about sensitive issues.

Insights from the community

Discussions highlighted 3 key themes:

• Preferred context for talking about prostate cancer varied with individuals: while many valued group discussions, some preferred one-to-one conversations in GP surgeries. Creative ideas, such as wearing awareness badges, were suggested to help encourage informal dialogue.
• Preferred settings and timing:  participants noted that community venues such as mosques and gurdwaras could be trusted spaces for health conversations. Suggestions were also made to hold future workshops on weekends to encourage greater attendance.
• Trusted sources of information – trust was important and community health ambassadors and GP surgeries were identified as credible sources. Attendees explained that personal stories and experiences within families coupled with open communication play a vital role in raising awareness.

Looking ahead

The findings will help shape the recruitment approach for a qualitative study which forms part of Aiman’s PhD on prostate cancer among South Asian men, including decisions on whether to use community-based or primary-care based recruitment, and whether interviews should be face-to-face, by phone, or in groups.  A similar consultation will take place with men from the Somali community in early September. Aiman’s PhD is linked to the Bristol BRC project on improving outcomes for South Asian men with prostate cancer.

Reflecting on the workshop, Dr Julia Wade said:

“We’re hugely grateful to Caafi Health and in particular, Zia Haque, one of their Health Ambassadors, who made this workshop such a success. Zia recruited our attendees, all of whom were very engaged in discussions. We couldn’t have run this event without his help.”

The workshop ended with a strong call for continued investment in community-led initiatives, with participants suggesting that future events could include the offer of on-site blood testing.