Hundreds of doctors have called on Health Minister Wes Streeting to make good on his election promise to fund osteoporosis screening clinics.
In a letter to the minister, shared exclusively with The Mail on Sunday, the doctors have called on the Government to prioritize treatment of the bone-thinning disease as part of the NHS’s New Year plans to prevent ‘widespread harm’.
During the election campaign, Mr Streeting told this newspaper that one of his first acts in government would be to give every part of the country access to Fracture Liaison Services (FLS), the gold standard in the early diagnosis of osteoporosis.
The letter states: ‘Following the (election) promise, the entire clinical community in this field has mobilized to help you make this an early success of the new government. We fear that, without a national mandate… good intentions may come to nothing, resulting in widespread harm and increasing pressure on the NHS and social services.”
The doctors are now calling for the rollout of FLS to be included in the upcoming Planning Guidance, which will set out priorities, targets and actions for NHS Trusts between April 2025 and March 2026.
Osteoporosis affects more than 3.5 million people in the UK, but many only realize they have it when they break a bone. By then it is too late for preventive treatment.
Fracture Liaison Services are intended to predict bone fractures earlier in patients’ lives with a bone density test, called a DEXA scan.
If signs of osteoporosis are noticed, patients can be given bone-sparing medications sooner, leading to fewer fractures.
Hundreds of doctors have called on Health Minister Wes Streeting to fulfill his election promise to fund osteoporosis screening clinics
Osteoporosis affects more than 3.5 million people in Britain, but many don’t realize they have it until they break a bone. File image
However, only half of hospital trusts offer this service, causing millions of people to miss out on screening.
The Mail on Sunday last year launched a campaign to extend Fracture Liaison Services to all parts of England, backed by the Royal Osteoporosis Society.
It was led by Ruth Sunderland, business editor of the Mail’s Group, following her own diagnosis of osteoporosis. More than 50 MPs and lords backed the campaign earlier this month, writing in The Mail on Sunday: ‘With the level of political consensus around these services, now has never been a better time to deliver on the promise to change lives and to save. ‘
The latest call from doctors comes after this newspaper revealed last week that 36,000 hospital beds could be freed up each winter by fulfilling the pledge.
Research shows that without government intervention, people with osteoporosis will have 74,000 preventable fractures by 2030, including 31,000 life-threatening hip fractures.
This will take up 750,000 bed days, dashing hopes of reducing waiting lists. Universal FLS will save the NHS £440 million over five years.
Campaigners warn that if FLS is not included in the NHS 2025 priority list it could lead to thousands of avoidable deaths.
“If it doesn’t include Fracture Liaison Services, nothing will
change for at least another year, if not ever,” says Craig Jones, CEO of the Royal Osteoporosis Society.
‘In that scenario we will see an additional 2,500 unnecessary deaths each year from broken hips that could have been prevented.
‘Thousands of lives depend on Wes Streeting putting his promise into action in next month’s planning guidelines.’
A spokesperson for the Department of Health and Social Care said the planning guidance would be published in the new year, adding: ‘Patients across the country, including those suffering from osteoporosis, are waiting too long for care and treatment. Our Plan for Change will get healthcare back on its feet and ready for the future.”