Footballer Ella Toone has become an ambassador of Prostate Cancer UK two years after her “hero” dad died of the disease.
Toone, who won the European championships with England in 2022 and 2025, lost her father Nick, aged 59, in 2024.
The Lioness and Manchester United star, 26, said: “Dad was my absolute hero. He was always there at every match; it was him that gave me my love of the game.
“He is the reason why I am a Lioness. There isn’t a day that goes by that I don’t think about him and mourn what my family has lost.
“Prostate cancer is now the UK’s most common cancer. In the next 10 years almost three quarters of a million men will be living with the disease or its impact.
“These men aren’t just numbers – they’re dads just like mine – partners, brothers and mates trying to navigate their way through the disease.
“That’s why, this Father’s Day, I am proud to become an ambassador for Prostate Cancer UK.
“As the UK’s biggest public funder of prostate cancer research, they are driving breakthroughs in diagnosis and treatment.
“Breakthroughs that will make prostate cancer screening a reality and give men more treatment options with fewer side effects.
“So men like my dad can be diagnosed early enough to be treated and can spend more time with the people they love.”
Nick Toone died three days short of his 60th birthday, having been diagnosed with prostate cancer the day after he watched his daughter score in the Euro 2022 final, a match in which England beat Germany 2-1 at Wembley.
According to statistics from Prostate Cancer UK, the disease is now the most common cancer in the UK. It affects one in every eight men, with one man dying from prostate cancer every 45 minutes.
Ahead of Father’s Day this weekend, Red Roses rugby player Alex Matthews has also been announced as an ambassador for the organisation.
Her dad Dave is currently being treated for the disease.
World Cup winner Matthews said: “I know all too well the devastation that prostate cancer can have on a family. My dad Dave was originally diagnosed with prostate cancer over 10 years ago.
“We were all so relieved when he first got all clear. But the cancer returned in 2023 and this time it isn’t curable.
“It has been a long, upsetting journey and there are times we didn’t know which way to turn.
“My dad is still going through treatment when he was well enough to watch me captain the Red Roses last year, it meant everything to me.
“That’s why this Father’s Day, I feel so passionate about becoming an ambassador for Prostate Cancer UK. They aren’t only supporting men right now, just like my dad.
“They are also transforming the future of prostate cancer care, funding early diagnosis and making sure men who do have treatment don’t have as few negative impacts as possible.”
She added that it was “about time every man had a clearer path forward and the confidence to choose the way that’s right for him” and he was “proud” to stand alongside Prostate Cancer UK and the support they provide.
Prostate Cancer UK’s fundraising and strategy director Chiara De Biase said Toone and Matthews’s “passion, profile and competitive spirit” would help continue drive home the “vital message” that prostate cancer is the UK’s most common cancer and “knowing your risk can save your life”.
She added: “With them in our corner, we can reach even more men and loved ones when it matters most and give them the power to navigate prostate cancer with confidence.”
Last year Toone shared that her father’s death came as a shock, in large part because he had not explained to her how ill he was until near the end.
Writing for the Players’ Tribune, she wrote: “When he passed, it was a big shock, even to some of the people closest to him, because no one hardly knew he was ill.
“People ask me now, ‘Why didn’t you tell us?’, and I’m like, I didn’t know either. I didn’t know half of it… it’s still raw. I still feel the pain digging in, the gutting feeling of not having him here anymore.
“Even now, sometimes I think he’s going to come back, like he’s right in the other room waiting for me to come around the corner so he can have a joke or some banter… he was always on a wind up.”
Men can check their risk of prostate cancer online in just 30 seconds by visiting: prostatecanceruk.org/risk-check
You can donate to help fund Prostate Cancer UK’s research at: https://prostatecanceruk.org/get-involved/donate/dm/give-men-the-power-to-navigate-prostate-cancer.
