‘I never imagined we could treat patients like this’: New treatment for heart failure cuts deaths by two thirds
A new way of treating heart failure has cut deaths by nearly two-thirds, bringing hope to patients and families affected by the deadly condition.
St George’s Hospital in Blackshaw Road, Tooting, has treated the UK’s first patient with the pioneering treatment, Selsdon resident Paul Curtis.
The 71-year-old retired builder received the treatment after suffering a heart attack in July last year.
He was diagnosed with acute heart failure – but has now been discharged by the service after undergoing treatment.
He said: “I’m feeling very well and my life is back to how it was before I was diagnosed.
“We’ve been going out for meals again with friends, and I’m able to do things around the house, like washing the car and mowing the lawn.”
Until now patients with the condition – which happens when the heart is unable to pump blood properly around the body – are started on small amounts of drugs to help improve heart function, with doses increased over several months.
The new treatment means that eligible patients at St George’s receive “optimal” doses of medicines, meaning some patients will ramp up treatment much more quickly.
Matthew Sunter, lead heart failure nurse at St George’s, said: “Heart failure kills as many people as cancer, yet cancer treatments such as chemotherapy start faster.
“Now, armed with our new knowledge, we’re able to replicate this with heart failure patients.
“I’ve been in this role for 10 years, and when I started I never imagined we could treat patients like this. We’ve come a really long way, and I’m so proud of the work we’ve been doing at St George’s.”
As well as drastically reducing deaths by 62 per cent, this method of treatment has been shown to boost quality of life and ease pressures on other NHS services, by slashing hospital readmittance rates by 30 per cent and reducing the number of appointments.
Up to 100 patients a year at St George’s are expected to be enrolled – with 12 people already having been treated under this new model.
Nicola Shopland, chief nurse at St George’s, said: “Heart failure is a serious condition that can seriously impact a person’s life – and, in worst cases, prove fatal.
“We run the only dedicated specialist heart failure unit in the country, and now we’re building on this success by adopting a new way of treating patients that will save many lives.”
The new programme will be delivered in partnership with Roche Diagnostics, which provides a blood test that checks for signals given off by the heart to see if it is under stress or dysfunctioning.
This enables higher doses of treatments to be delivered safely.
Pictured top: Paul Curtis while on holiday after his treatment (Picture: Paul Curtis)