What if one simple change in medical terminology could reduce unnecessary treatment, ease patients' fears, and even save thousands of lives every year? Researchers now believe that may be possible by removing the word "cancer" from the lowest-risk form of prostate cancer.

A new study published in JAMA Oncology suggests that Grade Group 1 (GG1) prostate cancer—the least aggressive form of the disease—should no longer be labelled as cancer. Instead, researchers argue it should be described as a precancerous or low-risk prostate condition that better reflects its actual biological behaviour.

According to the study, changing the name could encourage more men to undergo prostate cancer screening while reducing the fear and anxiety that often follow a cancer diagnosis. Researchers estimate that such a shift could prevent nearly 2,400 prostate cancer deaths every year.

Senior author Dr. Scott Eggener, Chair of Urology at the David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), said patients deserve information that accurately reflects the real risk posed by their disease rather than a label that creates unnecessary fear and confusion.

The researchers explained that GG1 tumours typically grow very slowly over many years and, in many cases, never become life-threatening. These tumours usually do not cause symptoms unless a more aggressive cancer develops later in the prostate.

Despite this, the word "cancer" often triggers significant emotional distress. Current medical guidelines recommend active surveillance, commonly known as a "watch-and-wait" approach, instead of immediate surgery or radiation. However, the study notes that nearly 40% of men in the United States still choose aggressive treatment because of anxiety associated with the diagnosis.

Those treatments can lead to lifelong complications such as urinary incontinence, erectile dysfunction, and reduced quality of life, even when the tumour itself may never have become dangerous.

Using national data, the research team estimated that nearly one-third of all newly diagnosed prostate cancer cases—around 100,000 cases annually—fall into the GG1 category.

The researchers believe that if these low-risk tumours were no longer labelled as cancer, more men might feel comfortable participating in routine prostate cancer screening without fearing unnecessary treatment. Earlier screening could then help doctors detect more aggressive cancers at a stage when they are easier to treat.

At the same time, the researchers acknowledged a potential concern. Some patients might take a non-cancer diagnosis less seriously and fail to attend regular follow-up appointments. Their analysis estimated this could result in approximately 452 additional deaths among men who do not remain under active surveillance. Even after accounting for that risk, the overall benefit remained substantial, with an estimated 2,835 additional aggressive prostate cancers prevented through improved screening, leading to a net reduction in prostate cancer deaths.

Dr. Eggener stressed that changing the terminology would not mean ignoring these tumours. Instead, patients would still require careful monitoring, but the language would more accurately represent the disease's extremely low risk.

He also pointed out that medicine has previously changed disease names when scientific evidence showed older terminology overstated the danger. Similar reclassifications have already occurred in bladder, cervical, thyroid, and even certain prostate conditions to better match their true biological behaviour.

The researchers believe that updating the terminology for GG1 prostate disease could reduce unnecessary treatments, improve patients' quality of life, and strengthen confidence in prostate cancer screening programmes, ultimately helping doctors identify and treat aggressive cancers before they become life-threatening.