Dave Cossie interviewed by BBC Shropshire about prostate cancer

Shrewsbury Town's Dave Cossie chatted to BBC Shropshire on Monday about his - and his twin brother's - battle with prostate cancer.

Our much-loved maintenance assistant, and former academy driver, was diagnosed with prostate cancer in April 2023.

And he is now working with Prostate Cancer UK to ensure men realise just how simple it is to have a blood test and get checked.

Dave's story is a remarkable one.

His diagnosis came just nine months after his twin brother Pete received the devastating news he had incurable prostate cancer – with doctors telling him he had just six months to live.

Today – three and a half years on – Pete is still alive and fighting.

But his diagnosis meant doctors advised Dave to have regular prostate-specific antigen (PSA) blood tests from that point on.

And while the first two came back clear, the third showed an elevated PSA of 6.5 - with Dave eventually being told he had stage two prostate cancer.

Figures show one in eight men get prostate cancer in their lifetime, but that figure rises to one in four for black men.

Thankfully for Dave, who has a Jamaican father, his diagnosis was caught in time.

And that’s made him determined to raise awareness of the disease and the importance of testing.

Today marks the start of men's health week - with BBC Radio Shropshire contacting Dave to ask him to share his story.

Dave is currently working with Prostate Cancer UK to let men know that they don't need a rectal exam (a 'finger up the bum') to test for prostate cancer.

The charity's research has shown that fear of 'the finger' is the biggest factor putting men off speaking to their GP about disease, and it's leading to too many men getting an incurable diagnosis.

So, Dave is working with the organisation to reassure men that the first step is a simple blood test.

He wants to share the potentially life-saving message that "you don't need a finger up the bum to test for prostate cancer".

Shrewsbury Town urges any man over 50 to go for a simple blood test. - with prostate cancer now, statistically, the biggest killer of men.

For more information about prostate cancer and Prostate Cancer UK click HERE.