Labour has pledged to ramp up the battle against osteoporosis by delivering an extra 15,000 scans to catch the disease at the earliest possible stage.
The Sunday Express scored a major victory last month when both the Conservatives and Labour set the ambition of providing everyone in England with access to specialist fracture services that will spot bone disease and prevent life-threatening injuries.
Shadow Health Secretary Wes Streeting has now pledged to ensure that thousands more patients get access to cutting-edge “Dexa” scanners which assess the strength of bones.
More than 37,000 patients are waiting for a Dexa scan and it is feared that two-thirds of people with osteoporosis are missing out on treatment.
Mr Streeting said: “Osteoporosis is a debilitating illness that leads millions of people to suffer painful bone breaks and disability. The faster patients are diagnosed, the sooner they can be treated and helped to get on with living their lives to the full.
“Labour will ensure patients are seen quicker for bone scans, providing an extra 15,000 a year to beat the Tory backlog. Thanks to the Sunday Express’ roaring Better Bones campaign, osteoporosis is no longer the silent disease, and with a Labour government patients will be diagnosed earlier and treated faster.”
The promise is part of Labour’s campaign pledge to deliver 40,000 extra appointments each week – the equivalent of two million a year – in a bid to tackle waiting lists.
It intends to double the number of NHS CT scanners, which can also be used to detect osteoporosis, over the next half-decade.
Craig Jones of the Royal Osteoporosis Society said Mr Streeting’s commitment to deliver 15,000 more Dexa scans a year was “extremely welcome”. But he pointed out that some areas of the country lack access to these scanners.
Warning that elderly patients can face a “three-hour round trip” to get a scan, he urged the Labour rising star to address these “cold spots”.
He said Labour’s pledge will “give thousands of patients access to medication they desperately need to prevent dangerous fractures,” adding: “The current backlog can be cleared in a couple of years. Crucially, though, last month’s commitment for fracture liaison services in every area by 2030 will mean tens of thousands of new patients being identified for scans, meaning a bigger boost to capacity is needed.
“These people are currently invisible to the system, but if this scans pledge is extended to cover them too then we can eradicate the lion’s share of fractures.”
