Thousands of people could be living undiagnosed with incurable lung conditions despite seeking medical help for coughs and chest infections, a charity has warned.
A survey of 12,000 people with lung conditions in the UK by Asthma + Lung UK found that, while more than half of respondents were treated for their immediate chest symptoms, they did not have the underlying cause investigated at the time.
Coughs and chest infections that keep on coming back can be early warning signs of a lung condition such as asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), the charity has warned.
The survey also found one in five of all respondents had to wait more than a year for an accurate diagnosis of a chronic lung condition.
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The charity is arguing that the root of the problem is the fact that simple tests for diagnosing lung conditions are not widely available to healthcare professionals, forcing them to take a ‘sticking plaster’ approach to treating chest symptoms, but not the cause.
Combined with pressures in primary care, this means the early tell-tale signs of a lung condition are too often missed, leaving people with breathing difficulties without an accurate diagnosis, or receiving treatment for conditions they don’t have.
Currently, 1.7 million people are living with COPD in the UK, and around 600,000 are living undiagnosed, Asthma + Lung UK has highlighted.
Previous analysis commissioned by the charity has shown that as many as 750,000 people in England are misdiagnosed with asthma, costing an estimated £132m every year.
Data also shows that, after a referral to see a specialist, two in five people are not starting treatment within the recommended timeframe of 18 weeks, and more than 6,000 are waiting more than a year.
Early detection in primary care is crucial for treating and managing lung conditions such COPD, which includes emphysema, or protecting people from potentially life-threatening asthma attacks.
It can also lead to a reduction in hospital admissions and improvement in quality of life and healthy life expectancy.
Yet the charity has argued that many people seen in GP surgeries, A&E and urgent care centres with chest symptoms may have undiagnosed lung conditions, which are potential missed opportunities for starting a process of early diagnosis and preventing further ill health.
The UK has the worst death rates from lung conditions in Europe and tackling diagnosis could help people stay well and save lives, it has added.
As a result, it is now calling on government to provide long-term funding for GP practices to deliver testing for lung conditions, including spirometry and FeNO (fractional exhaled nitric oxide).
It also wants to see national diagnosis targets for lung conditions to ensure nobody waits more than six weeks for a diagnostic test, and for waiting lists to be halved by 2028.
Sarah Sleet, CEO at Asthma + Lung UK, said: “People who are struggling to breathe face agonising waits for an accurate diagnosis. They’re being misdiagnosed, or diagnosed too late, or are not put on the right treatment. As a result, the pressures on the NHS grow and grow with more emergency admissions and hospital stays. We need lung conditions to be treated as seriously as cancer and heart disease.
“A sticking plaster approach of treating symptoms, not the underlying cause, means too many people with lung conditions go undiagnosed for far too long. The new government’s commitment to rebalancing spending between primary care and secondary care is very welcome.
“We are calling for funding for GP practices to provide rapid testing for everyone experiencing signs of a lung condition. We also need national targets for diagnosis and specialist treatment to drive faster diagnosis and provide quicker access to the right course of treatment so people with lung conditions can slow down the progression of their illness and better manage their symptoms,” Sleet added.
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