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Home / Critical illness cover / - Kidney Failure
Background information
At the end of 1998, over 31,000 patients were suffering from end-stage renal failure.
About half of these received transplants, while the remainder were treated with dialysis.
(UK Renal Registry, 1999)
Definition
End stage renal failure presenting as chronic irreversible failure of both kidneys to function, as a result of which either regular renal dialysis or renal transplant is initiated.
What does this mean?
The function of the kidneys is to remove waste material from the bloodstream. If they do not work properly there can be a build up of waste material in the blood, which can become life threatening. The body can function perfectly well with only one kidney, but if both fail there will be a need for regular dialysis, to clean the blood artificially, or for a kidney transplant.
NEWS
Blood test to detect early stages of ovarian cancer developed
19 February 2008 15:48:01
Researchers have developed a blood test that is 99 per cent accurate at detecting the first stages of ovarian cancer.
As it is hoped by researchers that the test will become part of routine medical examinations for women, the findings may impact upon life insurance policies.
The disease is often referred to as "the silent killer" as under current medical practise, it is often not diagnosed until it has reached advanced stages.
Professor Gil Mor who led the research at the Yale School of Medicine said: "The ability to recognize almost 100 per cent of new tumours will have a major impact on the high death rates of this cancer."
Researchers increased the number of proteins used in blood tests from four to six and were able to detect cancer with between 95 and 99.4 per cent effectiveness.
The study was published in the journal Clinical Cancer Research.
According to Cancer Research UK, more than 6,600 cases of ovarian cancer are diagnosed each year in the UK and the disease causes more than 4,400 deaths.
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
'Awareness key to Ovarian Cancer survival'
03 March 2008 17:08:06
Cancer care professionals at Wythenshawe Hospital are urging women to familiarise themselves with the symptoms of ovarian cancer - a condition which can affect life insurance policies - during Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month.
According to gynaecologist Mr Ahmed and specialist nurse Margaret Ryan, being aware of the symptoms is the most important factor in early diagnosis and survival in cases of Ovarian Cancer
Ovarian cancer is the fourth most common cancer affecting women but the single biggest killer.
A major factor in late diagnosis of the disease is the lack of any specific symptoms, meaning it can often be misdiagnosed as other conditions such as irritable bowel syndrome.
Mr Ahmed, Consultant Gynaecologist said: "I would urge all women to take immediate action if they have any of the following symptoms: bloating, difficulty eating, increased abdominal size and increased urinary urgency, particularly if the symptoms are prolonged."
Women should request their GP refers them for an ultrasound scan to identify possible cancers if they have concerns, he added.
Risk of ovarian cancer is increased if two or more relatives from the same side have suffered from the disease and in woman that have never had children.
According to Cancer Research UK, every year in the UK over 6,600 cases of ovarian cancer are diagnosed and the disease causes more than 4,400 deaths.
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
Stress 'can cause breast cancer to recur'
27 September 2007 16:21:31
The importance of life insurance and critical illness cover has been underlined by a scientist studying breast cancer.
The expert from New York's University of Rochester medical centre found that women diagnosed with breast cancer who have gone through previous stressful events can have the disease recur almost twice as fast as other women.
Women with "peaceful" lives were said to experience a recurrence after about five years, while those who had faced abuse or life-threatening situations saw tumours return after half that time.
"There is such a dramatic difference between women who had experienced traumatic things and those who didn’t," said the author of the study, Oxana Palesh PhD.
"Clearly this study demonstrates that it's important to recover from trauma or stressful events for your mental and physical health," she added.
Previous studies have shown that stress can alter the functioning of the immune system, although there has been difficulty proving a clear link between stress and breast cancer.
Some large-scale studies have shown connections between recent stressful life events, for example the death of a spouse, and the risk of breast cancer, but others have been inconclusive.
Direct Life and Pensions Services Ltd are one of the UK's leading providers of life insurance, term life assurance, mortgage protection, and critical illnesslife insurance policies online.
19 February 2008 15:48:01
Researchers have developed a blood test that is 99 per cent accurate at detecting the first stages of ovarian cancer.
As it is hoped by researchers that the test will become part of routine medical examinations for women, the findings may impact upon life insurance policies.
The disease is often referred to as "the silent killer" as under current medical practise, it is often not diagnosed until it has reached advanced stages.
Professor Gil Mor who led the research at the Yale School of Medicine said: "The ability to recognize almost 100 per cent of new tumours will have a major impact on the high death rates of this cancer."
Researchers increased the number of proteins used in blood tests from four to six and were able to detect cancer with between 95 and 99.4 per cent effectiveness.
The study was published in the journal Clinical Cancer Research.
According to Cancer Research UK, more than 6,600 cases of ovarian cancer are diagnosed each year in the UK and the disease causes more than 4,400 deaths.
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
03 March 2008 17:08:06
Cancer care professionals at Wythenshawe Hospital are urging women to familiarise themselves with the symptoms of ovarian cancer - a condition which can affect life insurance policies - during Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month.
According to gynaecologist Mr Ahmed and specialist nurse Margaret Ryan, being aware of the symptoms is the most important factor in early diagnosis and survival in cases of Ovarian Cancer
Ovarian cancer is the fourth most common cancer affecting women but the single biggest killer.
A major factor in late diagnosis of the disease is the lack of any specific symptoms, meaning it can often be misdiagnosed as other conditions such as irritable bowel syndrome.
Mr Ahmed, Consultant Gynaecologist said: "I would urge all women to take immediate action if they have any of the following symptoms: bloating, difficulty eating, increased abdominal size and increased urinary urgency, particularly if the symptoms are prolonged."
Women should request their GP refers them for an ultrasound scan to identify possible cancers if they have concerns, he added.
Risk of ovarian cancer is increased if two or more relatives from the same side have suffered from the disease and in woman that have never had children.
According to Cancer Research UK, every year in the UK over 6,600 cases of ovarian cancer are diagnosed and the disease causes more than 4,400 deaths.
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
27 September 2007 16:21:31
The importance of life insurance and critical illness cover has been underlined by a scientist studying breast cancer.
The expert from New York's University of Rochester medical centre found that women diagnosed with breast cancer who have gone through previous stressful events can have the disease recur almost twice as fast as other women.
Women with "peaceful" lives were said to experience a recurrence after about five years, while those who had faced abuse or life-threatening situations saw tumours return after half that time.
"There is such a dramatic difference between women who had experienced traumatic things and those who didn’t," said the author of the study, Oxana Palesh PhD.
"Clearly this study demonstrates that it's important to recover from trauma or stressful events for your mental and physical health," she added.
Previous studies have shown that stress can alter the functioning of the immune system, although there has been difficulty proving a clear link between stress and breast cancer.
Some large-scale studies have shown connections between recent stressful life events, for example the death of a spouse, and the risk of breast cancer, but others have been inconclusive.
Direct Life and Pensions Services Ltd are one of the UK's leading providers of life insurance, term life assurance, mortgage protection, and critical illnesslife insurance policies online.