The start of 2025 has seen the release of startling new stats, showing that the demand for screening through CRY’s UK-wide cardiac testing programme (www.testmyheart.org.uk) is “exponentially outstripping capacity” with the waiting list (which registers the details of any individual interested in booking a screening appointment with CRY) now exceeding 105,000.
As such, the story – coupled with the ongoing call for the roll out of a publicly-funded National Screening Programme for young people aged 14-35 – was debated at length in a 10 minute, powerful and poignant case study-led feature on BBC Breakfast on Tuesday 4th February – the start of Heart Month 2025, with a follow-up report broadcast on the One O’clock lunchtime news.
CRY’s CEO, Dr Steven Cox, explains; “This is certainly a milestone – but not a milestone we ever wanted to reach. To put that in context, 100,000+ is clearly a powerful statistic in terms of demonstrating the sheer scale of interest in CRY’s highly reputable nationwide screening programme and the growing demand from young people who want to take proactive steps in having their heart tested. But it’s frustrating for us, as a charity and the team of expert cardiologists who we work with, that we are unable to meet this demand, despite believing that every young person has the right to have their heart tested.
“For nearly 30 years we have been campaigning and trying to inform and influence decision makers in the Government and the National Screening Committee. And, over these past 3 decades we have developed a robust, cost-effective and research led screening programme.
“To date, over 315,000 young people aged 14-35 have had their hearts tested and – according to widely acknowledged data – we know at least 3,000 young lives have been saved through early identification and treatment of asymptomatic heart conditions.”
“It’s unacceptable that this programme is still funded by bereaved families and those affected by the tragedy of young sudden cardiac death. The framework is in place, years of research have refined our screening criteria – so we now owe it to our young people to ensure their heart health is protected through the roll out of a nationwide screening programme, that can meet demand.”
Many of the young people who are identified through community screenings with potential abnormalities will be referred back to CRY’s Consultant Cardiologists, Professor Sanjay Sharma and Professor Michael Papadakis along with their expert team at St George’s Hospital, London for further investigations or to a specialist centre for Inherited Cardiac Conditions (ICC) in their local areas.
The vast majority of CRY’s screenings are funded by families who have been affected by a young sudden cardiac death, so there is no charge to the individual when CRY’s mobile cardiac screening service comes to a local venue. CRY uses a non-invasive way of diagnosing most cardiac abnormalities. It is a quick, painless and affordable procedure called an electrocardiogram (ECG), reviewed by a specially trained medic. If a young person is found to have an abnormality, CRY will also swiftly refer them for Echocardiogram screen (ultrasound), usually on the same day.
CRY would like to thank our supporters Paul & Ellen Clabburn, Debbie Dixon and Hilary Nicholls who all bravely agreed to share their own experience of young sudden cardiac death with the BBC reporting team – as well as Professor Aneil Malhotra (former CRY Research Fellow) who joined Debbie ‘on the sofa’ at the BBC News studios in Salford, to provide valuable expert medical insight and opinion.
