Custom byline text: Helen Puttick Health Correspondent According to the study, only about one-third of sufferers who could benefit from life-transforming medicines are taking them one of the worst rates in Europe. Four NHS boards are failing to meet official standards for giving patients access to the range of specialists they need, according to the research by the MS Society. The report, titled A Lottery of Treatment and Care MS Services across Scotland and the UK, reveals one-quarter of patients say they cannot see a neurologist when they need help with their symptoms. Christine Carlin, director of the charity in Scotland, says in the foreword: "This report should be a sobering wake-up call for all of us working to improve the lives of people with MS in the UK. "For the 10,500 people in Scotland who live with MS, there remains great inequality in the services, support and care available across the country." Scotland has one of the highest rates of MS in the world, but Ms Carlin said the survey found too many areas where care and treatment lagged behind other parts of the UK. She added: "Some of the statistics in this report are nothing short of shameful." … Continue reading →

The MS Society carried out the survey and is now calling for an end to the 'postcode lottery' of care for sufferers Lucy Clapham Monday, April 29, 2013 7:00 AM A divide between access to specialist treatment for MS sufferers in Norfolk and Suffolk has been revealed - as a campaign to put an end to postcode lottery care is launched. To send a link to this page to a friend, you must be logged in. New figures have shown almost half of patients living in Suffolk have not been able to see an MS nurse in the last 12 months when required - while three quarters of sufferers in neighbouring Norfolk have. The contrast in care has been revealed by leading charity the MS Society, which this week launched its campaign calling for all sufferers to have fair access to the treatments and services they need, when they need them. The society carried out a nationwide survey of people with multiple sclerosis - the most common disabling neurological condition affecting young adults - and spoke to hundreds of patients in both counties. Its figures - published today - showed 47pc of people in Suffolk who needed to see an … Continue reading →

MS patients 'suffering' in north east Essex 8:00am Monday 29th April 2013 in News MORE than 60 per cent of MS patients in north east Essex are not being given the correcttreatment for the condition. Research carried out by the MS Society centres on access to disease modifying treatment drugs (DMTs) which research suggests can reduce MS relapses by one third. There is a disparity with other parts of the UK, with some commissioning groups being prepared to fund the drugs and others not. The society surveyed 88 people from north east Essex as part of a nationwide poll of more than 10,000 adults living with MS. It is the largest UK survey among people with MS ever conducted. Nick Rijke, Director of Policy and Research at the MS Society, added: These findings worryingly suggest that many people in north east Essex with MS are being denied treatments that can dramatically improve quality of life, reducing relapses and the range of often devastating symptoms that come with them. People with MS are facing a lottery when it comes to accessing the care and support they need to manage their condition and this must change. Not only does access to medicine … Continue reading →

In a letter to the Daily Telegraph, notable figures including Eddie Izzard, Sally Gunnell OBE and Billie Piper, called for an end to the postcode lottery and treatment for all. Oritse Williams, a band member of the boy band JLS, who helped care for his mother who has MS while he was growing up, was also a signatory to the letter. Patricia Gordon, the acting Chief Executive of the MS Society, said that the UK is behind the rest of Europe in treating MS despite having high incidence of the disease. Perhaps most concerning is that as many as six out of 10 people with relapsing forms of MS are currently going without any form of disease modifying treatment. Across Europe, only Poland and Romania fare worse. The report found access to Sativex the UKs first cannabis-based licensed medicine and Fampyra which can improve walking speed by 25 per cent is abysmally low. Only two per cent of people with MS have access to these life-changing treatments. Since the survey botox has been licensed for treatment for an overactive bladder, adding to the treatments which should be available for people with MS. The Postal survey of around 10,000 people with … Continue reading →