Are You Looking After Your Lungs?
With new data revealing at least 3 Brits die each hour[i] from a preventable lung condition, the European Lung Foundation and respiratory organisations across the UK are calling on people to get their lungs tested on the first ever World Spirometry Day – 14th October.
Lung disease is already the leading killer in the UK and is rapidly becoming the third biggest cause of death worldwide.
With 80 Brits predicted to die from lung disease today, doctors and nurses across the country are championing spirometry testing as the only way to overcome the widespread under-diagnosis of serious lung conditions like asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).
The most prevalent and debilitating lung disease, COPD is under-diagnosed in 75% of cases[ii], and global figures show half of patients remain un-diagnosed.
Widespread under-diagnosis means sufferers only realise they have a serious lung disease once it is too late to prevent major damage, leaving them unable to carry on a healthy and active life. Women are as at risk as men, with those most at risk being over 40 and current or ex-smokers.
Regular and early lung testing helps people to identify potentially debilitating lung conditions before too much damage is done, giving them a chance to slow the disease’s progression before it completely ruins their lung function - leading to an isolating, painful, and immobile later life.
An MOT for the lungs
Doctors and nurses are taking to the streets across the country today to run public lung testing events to raise awareness of spirometry testing - the most accurate way to reassure people that their lungs are healthy, or to identify any potential danger. Doctors have nicknamed spirometry testing 'the MOT for your lungs,' to remind people just how critical regular testing is.
Professor Sue Hill, Chief Scientific Officer and Joint National Clinical Director for Respiratory Disease at the Department of Health, said:
"The lungs are a vital part of our bodies, constantly exposed to the outside world through the air that we breathe in. In this country it is a tragedy that most people with COPD and other lung conditions are not diagnosed until they have lost over half of their lung function.
"Unlike other parts of the body, lung damage cannot be repaired. At best all we can hope to do is slow down the progression of the disease. World Spirometry Day is so important in informing the general public of this simple test and raising awareness of the importance of maintaining good lung health and seeking help for early symptoms of lung disease."
"In the time it takes to read this someone will have died from a preventable lung disease in Europe," said Monica Fletcher, CEO of Education for Health and Chair of the European Lung Foundation.
"Even scarier to consider are the millions of sufferers living with impaired quality of life because their conditions were not identified early enough.
"On World Spirometry Day we want people to know that their doctors’ and nurses’ are here to help - early testing is a positive first step and can dramatically improve outcomes. The message should be: don’t be afraid to find out."
After being misdiagnosed with asthma for 8 years, Leigh Wilkinson, 44 from Grimsby, was finally accurately diagnosed thanks to a spirometry test, said: "I am so grateful that I pushed my doctor to give me a spirometry test, which revealed that I had developed COPD and emphysema.
"I understand why people want to avoid learning about the damage they may be doing to themselves but when I took the plunge I did it as much for my family as myself and it’s the best step I’ve ever taken."
Jeanette Brason, 56 years old from Poole, was diagnosed with BUOP 2 years ago after collapsing. She had been suffering what she thought was a common cold or flu, and was given antibiotics by her doctor, who told her it was nothing to worry about.
Ten days later she nearly lost her life - her lungs had filled ¾ full with fluid, and she was rushed to hospital. After a fortnight under examination from doctors and other specialist lung health experts, she was diagnosed with Bronchiolitis obliterans organizing pneumonia (BOOP).
After being diagnosed with BOOP, later that year Jeanette was diagnosed with COPD. She wishes she’d had a spirometry test earlier, as her doctor did not know what to look out for when she came to him with her cold that wouldn’t shift.
She was relieved to come out of her near-death ordeal safely, but is understandably upset about the impact her disease has had on her life. She has had to quit her career in the hotel industry, and regularly has days when she does not feel like she has the energy to get out of bed and do anything.
She smoked when she was younger, but quite a fair few years ago. Her doctors have informed her that her condition may have been caused, or worsened, by the heavy air conditioning she was exposed to at work.
She thinks anyone who has smoked in the past, or is at risk due to their job should be on high alert and get tested using a spirometer regularly once they reach 45. Jeanette said that what people assume is just symptoms of old age (breathlessness and fatigue), can in fact be early signs of fatal lung conditions.
World Spirometry Day is taking place as part of the Year of the Lung, a 2010 campaign to highlight the hundreds of millions of people who unnecessarily struggle for life and breath every day due to lung diseases.
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