Free PSA Testing at the WA Country Football Championships

This July, prostate cancer awareness is heading to the footy. MediTests is proud to facilitate free PSA (Prostate Specific Antigen) blood testing for men at the Nutrien Ag Solutions Men's Country Football Championships, one of the biggest dates on the Western Australian football calendar.

The free tests will be available to eligible men aged over 18 attending the Men's Finals on Sunday 12 July at Fremantle Community Bank Oval. Referrals will be issued on-site, with blood collection facilitated by MediTests, as part of a partnership between The Hospital Research Foundation Group and Country Football WA. The tests are provided free of charge thanks to the support of The Hospital Research Foundation Group's partner, Subi Group.

It is a simple idea with a serious purpose: meet men where they already are, on a big day out with their mates and their community, and make one of the most important men's health checks easy, free and judgement-free.

Why prostate cancer testing matters for Australian men

Prostate cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer in Australian men, accounting for close to 30 per cent of all cancers diagnosed in men. Around one in six Australian men will be diagnosed in their lifetime, and each year thousands of Australian families are affected by the disease.

What makes prostate cancer so easy to overlook is that, in its early stages, it usually causes no symptoms at all. There is often no pain, no discomfort and no change in urination, so many men feel completely healthy while the disease develops quietly. By the time symptoms appear, the picture can be more complicated.

The encouraging part is that, when prostate cancer is found early, treatment options are generally broader and long-term outcomes are significantly better. That is exactly why raising awareness, and giving men an easy way to check, matters so much.

What the PSA blood test actually tells you

The PSA blood test is one of the most widely used tools for assessing prostate health. PSA is a protein produced naturally by cells in the prostate gland, and a simple blood test measures the level circulating in your bloodstream. That number gives clinicians useful information about whether any further investigation is worth considering.

It is important to be clear about what the test is, and what it is not. An elevated PSA result does not mean a man has prostate cancer. PSA can also rise for common, non-cancerous reasons, including an enlarged prostate, prostatitis (inflammation of the prostate), a urinary tract infection, recent ejaculation or certain medical procedures.

For that reason, the PSA test is best understood as a screening tool rather than a standalone diagnosis. What it can do is flag men who might benefit from a closer look by their doctor. Depending on the individual, that next step may involve a repeat blood test, imaging such as an MRI, or a referral to a urologist. For many men, a simple blood test becomes the first step towards identifying something that might otherwise have gone unnoticed.

Bringing preventive healthcare into the community

For MediTests, this initiative is about more than collecting blood at a sporting event. It reflects a broader mission: making preventive healthcare more accessible by removing the barriers that often stop Australians from taking proactive steps with their health.

Community events like the Country Football Championships are a chance to reach people who may not otherwise prioritise a health check, especially men travelling long distances from regional and remote parts of the state, where access to services can be harder. Rather than waiting until something feels wrong, preventive testing lets people establish a baseline, pick up potential concerns earlier and seek medical advice where it is needed.

A shared commitment to men's health

The initiative brings together organisations that all want the same thing: to make a potentially lifesaving check simpler and more accessible. The Hospital Research Foundation Group has described the partnership as a way to make prostate cancer testing simple and accessible for people from regional areas, noting that most of us know a friend, colleague or family member who has been affected, and that the earlier the disease is found, the easier it is to treat.

Country Football WA and the WA Football Foundation have spoken about the value of bringing a health service to a crowd that often travels for hours, or even days, from regional and remote communities to be there, and about helping to remove some of the stigma that can still surround men's health testing. Combining that with a major event the whole community turns out for makes it easier for men to take a first step they might otherwise put off.