Marie Curie welcomes spotlight on the needs of people living with long-term conditions

Marie Curie is the leading charity in the UK for people living with a terminal illness. In welcoming the report released by Macmillan Cancer Support today, Head of Policy and Public Affairs at Marie Curie, Simon Jones said:

“Macmillan’s report highlights a very important issue and one that is set to become even more pressing as people live longer.  We know that the total number of people in the UK with long term conditions, including cancer, is predicted to rise from 1.9 million people in 2008 to 2.9 million people in 2018.

“How we respond to this is just as important for anyone living with a terminal illness. Currently, 44% of people in the UK who are in the last year of life have multiple long-term conditions. With people living longer, this figure will only rise and this means that when people reach the last year of life, many will have complex care needs. It’s important for these people to get high quality care and support so they can get the most out of the time they have left and stay out of hospital for as long as possible. However, research published by the London School of Economics and Political Science on behalf of Marie Curie shows that around 110,000 people who need palliative care are missing out each year.

“This lets people down when they are at their most vulnerable and also puts huge pressure on the NHS. The cost of hospital care rises with every condition a person has.  Palliative care helps people stay out of hospital at the end of their lives and die in the place they usually live. The next Government must make getting good access to palliative care a priority for everyone who needs it.”