'WE MUST MAKE DEMENTIA AN NHS PRIORITY'

Experts warn we are not ready for 'future full of hope' in Alzheimer's care

- By Hanna Geissler

DEMENTIA has to be made an NHS priority or patients may miss out on breakthroughs in care, experts have warned.

They claim the service is not prepared for a "future full of hope” in diagnosing and treating the syndrome. A series of papers in The Lancet medical journal predicts that managing dementia will be dramatically transformed by new drugs and blood tests.

But the papers’ 40 authors warn that the potential of “major innovations” will not be realised without rapid reform — and leading dementia charities last night called on the Government to ensure that thousands of people do not miss out.

Professor Fiona Carragher, the chief policy and research officer at Alzheimer’s Society, said: “A new era for the treatment and diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease is here.

“Research has come a long way, the pace of new developments is rapid and the future is full of hope. But we risk people living with dementia in the UK not being able to benefit from these big breakthroughs unless we start preparing our NHS now.

“It’s vital that the UK Government ensures that people with dementia aren’t left behind.

“We want to see better access to early diagnosis so people don’t miss out on the narrow window of eligibility to benefit from future treatments which can slow Alzheimer’s disease.

“We must make dementia a priority. Alzheimer’s Society will continue to hold decision-makers to account and push for change.”

David Thomas, head of policy and public affairs at Alzheimer’s Research UK, said: “In under a decade, the number of experimental treatments for Alzheimer’s, the leading cause of dementia, has doubled and our understanding of the disease has advanced faster than ever before.