Dr Charmaine Griffiths
CEO, British Heart Foundation
Today is World Heart Day, which provides an opportunity to stop and look back on the immense progress we’ve made in saving and improving lives from heart and circulatory diseases over the last 60 years.
World Heart Day should also be a moment to recognise the significant challenge we face in preventing, treating and curing what are still the world’s biggest killers.
Today, hundreds of our loved ones will suffer heart attacks, strokes and cardiac arrests without a moment’s warning. This is an uncomfortable truth, but one that we can change based on the phenomenal progress we’ve already made.
Lifesaving discoveries
Over the past 60 years groundbreaking discoveries and public health changes have transformed the prospects of people living with heart and circulatory diseases. I’m proud to say the British Heart Foundation, funded through the public’s generosity, has been integral to this progress.
Our research has contributed to the first UK heart transplant, the development of pacemakers, the use of statins to lower cholesterol and the rollout of genetic testing for inherited heart conditions.
These discoveries save lives every day. The number of people dying each year from heart and circulatory diseases in the UK has halved since the BHF was formed.
But we can’t let this remarkable progress lead to complacency.
There are around 7.6 million people living with heart and circulatory diseases in the UK and more than 160,000 of our loved ones still die of these conditions each year.
The challenge ahead
There are around 7.6 million people living with heart and circulatory diseases in the UK and more than 160,000 of our loved ones still die of these conditions each year.
To make matters worse, the pandemic has had a devastating impact on all aspects of cardiovascular care – from diagnosis to treatment. Worryingly, we predict that waiting lists for vital heart treatment and diagnosis could more than double within two years in England without urgent action.
Science remains the answer
Just as science was the answer in 1961, it remains the answer today. Many of our researchers, fuelled by the public’s support, are on the cusp of making discoveries that will transform care once more.
Our work in regenerative medicine could lead to innovative treatments for heart failure by teaching the heart to repair itself. AI technologies are already leading to more effective ways to spot those most at risk of a deadly heart attack or stroke.
But this investment in science needs to be supported by Government action to resolve the growing crisis in cardiac care we face right now. Our heroic NHS needs significant long-term investment to recover from the pandemic and the Government must set out a clear plan for resolving the cardiovascular backlog.
