Yesterday, Damian Green held a debate in Parliament on new dementia treatments. This debate follows Alzheimer’s Month in September 2023 and the recent developments of two new treatments that slow the progress of Alzheimer’s disease.
Damian said that for the first time since dementia became a widespread condition as people live longer, there are glimmers of hope following these developments. Dementia has such a huge human cost, with nearly 1 million people living with it and this number is expected to rise to 1.6 million by 2050. Currently, 1,600 in Ashford are living with dementia. This is why we desperately need progress in diagnosis and treatments. Damian called for the Minister to give encouragement to the prospect of these new treatments becoming widely available, assuming they pass the relevant trials by NICE. He also called for the Minister to make sure NHS bodies and the industry develop a joint plan to allow these new treatments to be available on the NHS at a reasonable price.
The Minister for Social Care, Helen Whately MP, responded that it is the Government’s ambition for the UK to be the world leader in dementia prevention, diagnosis and research. She said that there are real reasons for optimism due to the fact that a significant proportion (40%) of dementia being preventable or delayable and also the real progress in research and development of new treatments. The Government is offering health checks for 40-74 year olds in England to prevent and delay the onset of dementia and the Major Conditions Strategy includes dementia alongside five other major conditions. The Government is also making progress in the research and developments of treatments and has already funded over £454 million in supporting dementia research, with a commitment to double this funding. She highlighted that it is important to follow the proper process in determining the safety of new treatments and that NICE takes into account all health related costs and benefits, including the social care aspect. Finally, she confirmed that NHS England is currently working to make sure it is ready to support the adoption of new treatments if they pass the trials.
You can watch the debate here.