PIF members back call to include older people in research
A joint statement of intent backed by 40 of the UK’s leading health funders and charities says more must be done to include people over 75 in health research. PIF members the British Heart Foundation, Cancer Research UK, the Alzheimer's Society and Asthma + Lung UK are among those who have added their voice to a call for unnecessary and arbitrary age restrictions on who can take part in research to end.
The joint statement says that in some cases excluding older adults can be seen as “unethical, often leading to research not being representative of the groups who have most disease”. Almost half of people aged 75 and over have two or more long‑term or chronic conditions. But data over the last five years from NIHR shows fewer than 2 in 10 participants were over the age of 75 at recruitment.
The statement says the inclusion of older people in research, including clinical trials, will lead to the development of more effective clinical, social, and public health strategies. This would help to address age-related health issues and improve the quality of life for our ageing population.
Read the full statement on the NIHR website here.
Addressing age-related health issues
The British Heart Foundation's chief scientific and medical officer, Professor Bryan Williams, said: “We are more likely to develop cardiovascular disease as we age. But in excluding older people from research, we’ve been left with unacceptable gaps in the evidence backing our tests and treatments.
"We must ensure the next generation of tests and treatments are safe and effective for everyone who might one day need them. We hope this important statement starts driving change so that older people are fairly represented in research.”
Read more from the British Heart Foundation on the charity's website here.