4th Feb 10

£23 billion annually spent on dementia sufferers

by Harry Oldfield

A new report has shown that dementia is costing the country £23 billion a year, more than cancer and heart disease combined.

The number of sufferers of dementia is about 822,000, and also 17 per cent higher than previously thought and will pass the one million mark prior to 2025, according to the Alzheimer’s Research Trust.

Showing stark contrasts in research funding, it is estimated that for every pound spent on dementia studies, £12 is spent on investigating cancer and £3 on heart disease.

The report also showed that the overall annual cost dwarfs the £12 billion cost for cancer care and the £8 billion for heart disease.

The £23 billion comprises of £9 billion in social care costs, £12 billion in unpaid care and £1.2 billion on other health care costs.

Researchers found that dementia patients cost the economy £27,657 each year, almost five times the amount of a cancer patient and eight times that of someone suffering from heart disease. The extent of unpaid carers and long-term institutional care is the reason for the amount of costs.

A big variation in the research funding was also revealed in the study, called the Dementia 2010 report.  It also calculated that £295 is spent on research for every person with cancer, compared with just £61 for each person with dementia, and it documents a diagnosis gap between the expected number of people with dementia and the number of patients with dementia on the registers of GPs.

Vote for the nations hero haggler
Money Worries? Cutting Back? Tell us more.

Subscribe to us

Subscribe for free and receive the latest Discount Vouchers News

Our Stories

Blair memoirs slam Brown
Man arrested in connection with Melanie Hall murder
Tesco accused of pushing through expansion projects to increase monopoly power
Study shows Brits willing to suffer sunburn for tan
Chandelier sales skyrocket at Debenhams
New figures show regional problem drinking in UK
Angry couple blasts BA for temporarily losing cat
Google targets iTunes with YouTube streams
Toys R Us launches partnership with Autism South Africa
UK retailers call for underage sales rules review
Notting Hill Carnival a Bank Holiday success
Arsenal footballer arrested in London

Archive

September 2010
August 2010
July 2010
June 2010
May 2010
April 2010
March 2010
February 2010
January 2010
December 2009
November 2009
October 2009
September 2009
August 2009
July 2009
June 2009
May 2009
April 2009
March 2009
January 2009
facebook ad
twitter ad