General

Human Rights Tribunal to reexamine “discriminatory” prostate cancer tests

Victoria lawyer says billing for tests is “gender discrimination”

Men paying for prostate cancer tests may be victims of gender discrimination, according to Victoria lawyer Laurie Armstrong. Armstrong challenged a previous ruling by the B.C. Supreme Court which found there was little evidence that regular prostate tests would reduce the number of prostate cancer deaths. The B.C. Human Rights Tribunal will review whether it’s discriminatory that men must pay for prostate specific antigen tests—as they do in most other provinces—while women receive free pap exams and mammograms. The B.C. Ministry of Health stands by its position that frequent prostate tests have little correlation with cancer diagnosis.

The Canadian Press

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