Stroke Association Warns Over 47,000 Stroke Patients in England Could Lose Out on Life-Changing Treatment

July 28, 2022

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A report by the Stroke Association notes that only 28% of eligible stroke patients in England received mechanical thrombectomy, a technique that can save lives and greatly reduce the disability caused by stroke. This number falls far short of NHS England’s goal of performing the procedure on all possible patients. During the operation, a blood clot is physically removed from cerebral blood vessels via a specialized catheter, avoiding some of the risks of the only other stroke treatment, tissue plasminogen activator.

According to Emily Kimber, “Access to the procedure in England has been described by the Stroke Association as a ‘postcode lottery’, with almost 8% of stroke patients in London receiving MT, compared to 0-3% in other parts of the country. The report highlights that, despite strokes occurring at any time and urgent treatment being critical, only 25% of thrombectomy centres operate 24/7 services and 42% only operate during office hours on Mondays to Fridays.”

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