Keywords
Citation
(2013), "United Kingdom - The UK’s five big killers", International Journal of Health Care Quality Assurance, Vol. 26 No. 6. https://doi.org/10.1108/ijhcqa.2013.06226faa.009
Publisher
:Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2013, Emerald Group Publishing Limited
United Kingdom - The UK’s five big killers
Article Type: News and views From: International Journal of Health Care Quality Assurance, Volume 26, Issue 6
Keywords: Preventable disease management in the UK, Health check access for detection of 5 big killers, Mortality and morbidity in the UK
Health secretary Jeremy Hunt has warned that the UK needs to take action to manage preventable diseases.
His “call to action” comes as a major study has found that Britain has fallen behind many Western countries on progress on the five big killers of heart disease, stroke, cancer, lung and liver disease.
Figures show that they account for more than 150,000 deaths a year among under-75 s in England alone and the Department of Health estimates 30,000 of these are entirely avoidable.
Coronary Heart Disease is the biggest killer, leading to 200 deaths a day in the UK with smoking, being overweight and having high blood pressure all risk factors.
Mr Hunt wants everybody aged 40-74 offered a health check once every five years to look for things like high blood pressure.
Stroke is the third leading cause of death in England each year and the leading cause of disability while cancer has become so common that today one in 30 people living in the UK either has cancer or is in remission.
The Chief Medical Officer of England, Professor Dame Sally Davies, highlighted liver disease as an issue in her annual report. It is the only major cause of mortality and morbidity that is on the increase in England but it is decreasing elsewhere in Europe.
For more information: www.hc2d.com