Marie Curie response on research that reveals ‘at least 42% more people will need palliative care in England and Wales by 2040’

Simon Jones, Director of Policy and Public Affairs at Marie Curie, said:

"The scale of the problem is significant.  It is clear that we need to radically rethink how we care for people at the end of their lives, to ensure everyone with a terminal illness gets the range of support they need, when they need it.  We need to start that process now, before we reach crisis point.

"We've launched a five year programme working with University of Cambridge and Sheffield Hallam University for the first phase to radically rethink how palliative and end of life care could be delivered for future generations.  It is hoped that the £3.5m Marie Curie Design to Care Programme will deliver a blueprint for a new type of palliative and end of life care service design that can meet the huge challenges ahead.

"If we don’t act now, more people in future will go without the care they desperately need, more will die where they don’t want to and more families and friends will have their lives devastated by the negative experiences of their dying loved ones."

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Ref: How many people will need palliative care in 2040? Past trends, future projections and implications for services. Etkind et al. BMC Medicine May 2017