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Home / Critical illness cover / - Alzheimer's Disease
Background information
There are now over 700,000 people with Dementia.
By the year 2010, if the current rate of growth continues, this figure will rise to 850,000.
(Alzheimer's Society, 2002)
Definition
Alzheimer’s disease having progressed to the extent that continual supervision and the assistance of another person is required. The diagnosis must be supported by evidence of progressive loss of ability to:
- remember;
- reason; and
- perceive, understand, express and give effect to ideas.
The condition must be irreversible with no reasonable prospect of there ever being any improvement.
What does this mean?
Alzheimer’s disease is a progressive and degenerative disease. The nerve cells in the brain deteriorate and the brain shrinks. The symptoms can include a severe loss of memory and concentration but there is an overall decline in all mental faculties.
NEWS
Breast cancer 'wonder drug' gets UK license
13 June 2008 17:49:12
A new "wonder drug" for breast cancer has been granted a license to be given to patients in Britain.
The drug, called Lapatinib, is used to prolong the life of patients in the advanced stages of a particular type of breast cancer.
Antonia Dean, clinical nurse specialist at Breast Cancer Care, said: "We speak to people with secondary breast cancer daily on our helpline, and know how they are especially interested in new treatments that could help slow down the progression of the disease."
Not yet approved by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (Nice), the drug will initially only be available on private prescription.
It is hoped that Nice will make a decision within a matter of months on whether to grant approval for the drug to make it available to all NHS breast cancer patients.
A recent report by the Office of National Statistics has shown that cases of breast cancer are increasing but mortality rates are declining.
'Gene therapy advances could lead to new treatments'
18 March 2008 17:31:09
More efficient methods of targeting genes have been discovered which could improve prospects for gene therapy.
Nobel prize-winning scientist Sir Aaron Klug and a team from American company Sangamo BioSciences have announced a new method of targeting genes that may pave the way for new treatments and affect life insurance policies.
Synthetic proteins are said by the scientists to be more efficient at targeting specific genes.
The synthetic transcription factors, called zinc-finger nucleases, have the capacity to recognise specific sequences of DNA enabling them to targeting particular genes without affecting others.
Sir Aaron explained: "The beauty of zinc-finger nucleases lies in their simplicity. Where other methods are long, arduous and often messy, it is relatively easy to switch off genes using this method.
"The zinc-finger design allows us to target a single gene, while the nuclease disrupts the gene. The single step process is extremely quick and reliable and opens up exciting possibilities for research and gene therapy."
Animal trials are already under way to use the technique to knock out the receptor of HIV in the cells of A ids patients to create a supply of non-infectable cells, which will combat HIV and the other infections which occur in A ids patients.
Clinical trials of the techniques are also in progress for stimulating the growth of new arteries in patients suffering from obstruction of the blood vessels in the limbs.
Gene therapy is also being studied for cancer treatments.
Direct Life and Pensions Services Ltd are one of the UK's leading providers of life insurance, term life assurance, mortgage protection, critical illness and life insurance advice online
Woman let down by critical illness policy
21 November 2007 10:24:58
A woman has been told that her critical illness policy does not cover a tumour in her brain.
According to the Observer, Mary Ryan's insurer told her that the tumour, for which she may need treatment for the rest of her life, is the "wrong kind".
Ms Ryan's £100-a-month lifetime cover with Skandia was intended to pay for her mortgage in the event of a serious illness.
After being diagnosed with a benign growth-hormone-secreting pituitary tumour, she had it partially removed and then targeted with radiation, although she has been left with some residual tumour.
Skandia rejected Ms Ryan's subsequent claim on the grounds that "cancers in the body must be malignant", with tumours in the pituitary gland or spine excluded.
"Skandia's critical illness contract is designed to pay an accelerated benefit on the diagnosis of a critical life-changing event," a spokesperson for the firm told the Observer.
"If adequately treated, pituitary tumours are not considered to be life-threatening and should not result in any significant long-term disability," the representative continued.
Ms Ryan's neurosurgeon, Michael Powell, has expressed the opinion that although her tumour was benign, the company's restriction is "totally unreasonable".
Direct Life and Pensions Services Ltd are one of the UK's leading providers of life insurance, term life assurance, mortgage protection, critical illness and life insurance advice online
13 June 2008 17:49:12
A new "wonder drug" for breast cancer has been granted a license to be given to patients in Britain.
The drug, called Lapatinib, is used to prolong the life of patients in the advanced stages of a particular type of breast cancer.
Antonia Dean, clinical nurse specialist at Breast Cancer Care, said: "We speak to people with secondary breast cancer daily on our helpline, and know how they are especially interested in new treatments that could help slow down the progression of the disease."
Not yet approved by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (Nice), the drug will initially only be available on private prescription.
It is hoped that Nice will make a decision within a matter of months on whether to grant approval for the drug to make it available to all NHS breast cancer patients.
A recent report by the Office of National Statistics has shown that cases of breast cancer are increasing but mortality rates are declining.
18 March 2008 17:31:09
More efficient methods of targeting genes have been discovered which could improve prospects for gene therapy.
Nobel prize-winning scientist Sir Aaron Klug and a team from American company Sangamo BioSciences have announced a new method of targeting genes that may pave the way for new treatments and affect life insurance policies.
Synthetic proteins are said by the scientists to be more efficient at targeting specific genes.
The synthetic transcription factors, called zinc-finger nucleases, have the capacity to recognise specific sequences of DNA enabling them to targeting particular genes without affecting others.
Sir Aaron explained: "The beauty of zinc-finger nucleases lies in their simplicity. Where other methods are long, arduous and often messy, it is relatively easy to switch off genes using this method.
"The zinc-finger design allows us to target a single gene, while the nuclease disrupts the gene. The single step process is extremely quick and reliable and opens up exciting possibilities for research and gene therapy."
Animal trials are already under way to use the technique to knock out the receptor of HIV in the cells of A ids patients to create a supply of non-infectable cells, which will combat HIV and the other infections which occur in A ids patients.
Clinical trials of the techniques are also in progress for stimulating the growth of new arteries in patients suffering from obstruction of the blood vessels in the limbs.
Gene therapy is also being studied for cancer treatments.
Direct Life and Pensions Services Ltd are one of the UK's leading providers of life insurance, term life assurance, mortgage protection, critical illness and life insurance advice online
21 November 2007 10:24:58
A woman has been told that her critical illness policy does not cover a tumour in her brain.
According to the Observer, Mary Ryan's insurer told her that the tumour, for which she may need treatment for the rest of her life, is the "wrong kind".
Ms Ryan's £100-a-month lifetime cover with Skandia was intended to pay for her mortgage in the event of a serious illness.
After being diagnosed with a benign growth-hormone-secreting pituitary tumour, she had it partially removed and then targeted with radiation, although she has been left with some residual tumour.
Skandia rejected Ms Ryan's subsequent claim on the grounds that "cancers in the body must be malignant", with tumours in the pituitary gland or spine excluded.
"Skandia's critical illness contract is designed to pay an accelerated benefit on the diagnosis of a critical life-changing event," a spokesperson for the firm told the Observer.
"If adequately treated, pituitary tumours are not considered to be life-threatening and should not result in any significant long-term disability," the representative continued.
Ms Ryan's neurosurgeon, Michael Powell, has expressed the opinion that although her tumour was benign, the company's restriction is "totally unreasonable".
Direct Life and Pensions Services Ltd are one of the UK's leading providers of life insurance, term life assurance, mortgage protection, critical illness and life insurance advice online