House of Commons (Westminster Hall) - Debate on Dementia
Burstow on NICE's recent decision to restrict certain Alzheimer's drugs.
Mr. Paul Burstow, Liberal Democrat MP for Sutton and Cheam
Mr Burstow said, 'Many of those on the front line of dealing with dementia are not the individual sufferers, but those affected by the ripples that it sends out through the family and those who take on the role of informal carers, the consequences of which can be huge in terms of stress and its health consequences.
'NICE's recent decision to restrict or even ban certain Alzheimer's drugs has come as a blow to patients, carers and clinicians alike. Research on treatment and cures for Alzheimer's receives far less funding than such research for other diseases. As of 2001, research on Alzheimer's received just £3.7 million of Government research funding, as compared with £33 million for cancer research, and the most recent figures suggest a widening of the gap in research spend. For every £11 spent per Alzheimer's patient on UK research annually, £289 is spent per cancer patient. I want to make it clear, however, that I am not questioning the investment that has been made in cancer research; I merely point to the unevenness of the research effort.'
He then said, 'A final point must be made about a potential cure for the disease. We appear to be far away from finding one. That relates to my first point: there simply is not enough funding for research into the disease. We must recognise the impact that dementia will have on our population as its prevalence continues to grow, and use that impact as the impetus to look seriously into curing the disease.
'I hope that we can reach a point at which treatments are available and research is extended. I hope that the Minister can give us some sense of the direction now, because many people outside the House feel hopeless and powerless as a result of the decisions that NICE has made.'