Former NIH Director Francis S. Collins and his decision to go public with his Prostate Cancer Diagnosis

WASHINGTON, D.C., April 12, 2024. – Francis Collins served as director of the National Institute of Health from 2009 to 2021 and as the director of the National Genome Research Institute at NIH from 1993 to 2008. Collins shares the journey to his prostate cancer diagnosis in an article for The Washington Post.

Collins decided to go public because he “want[s] to lift the veil and share lifesaving information, and [he] want[s] all men to benefit from the medical research to which [he has] devoted [his] career and that is now guiding [his] care.”

According to 2020 data, there were an estimated 1,414,000 new prostate cancer cases globally and approximately 375,000 deaths. This makes prostate cancer the most frequently diagnosed cancer in more than 100 countries around the world and the leading cause of cancer death in 48 of those countries.

If caught early, prostate cancer is imminently treatable and the 5-year survival rates are excellent at close to 100%. Regular screenings are recommended for men in certain age groups and follow up imaging is critical when prostate cancer is suspected.

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