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UK experts call for dementia funding increase

18/06/2008

Experts from 11 universities in the UK have called for an increase in funding into dementia research, claiming it is currently "pitifully low".

In an open letter to health secretary Alan Johnson, the scientists say without extra funding dementia care could cripple the NHS in the future.

Dementia care currently costs the economy more than £17 billion and is estimated to hit £35 billion within 20 years.

But less than three per cent of the Department of Health's research budget is spent on dementia research, compared to 25 per cent for cancer research.

Professor Simon Lovestone from King's College, London, and the ten other scientists wrote: "As the NHS turns 60, the question isn't whether it will last a further 60 years, but if it can survive the next 20.

"Funding for dementia research is pitifully low, while care costs are at an all-time high. With the prevalence of dementia expected to double within a generation, the health service as we know it may well be unsustainable."

They added: "The government must greatly increase dementia research funding now, or the NHS won't survive the next 20 years."

Alzheimer's Research Trust chief executive Rebecca Wood commented: "If underinvestment persists, the economic consequences arising from dementia care costs will be catastrophic.

"The government must reassert its commitment to social justice and financial prudence by proportionately funding dementia research."

The government is currently working on a national dementia strategy, which is expected to be launched in the autumn.