2 days Ago
Parkinson's sufferer unable to get hold of critical medication says debilitating disease is getting increasingly worse Have you been affected by the drug shortage crisis? Write to us at [email protected] By Erin Dean Published: 01:32, 30 June 2024 | Updated: 01:39, 30 June 2024 e-mail View comments When Gaynor Edwards can't get hold of the critical medication she uses to slow the progression of her Parkinson's disease, she knows from bitter experience what to expect.
Her debilitating muscle stiffness worsens. The tremors, a characteristic symptom of the degenerative condition, become more pronounced. She is less lucid, and – worst of all – she is in pain.
Yet for the 53-year-old from Rye, East Sussex, who took early retirement because of her diagnosis, this is an all-too familiar situation as millions of Britons are now affected by crippling and persistent shortages of essential medications. Gaynor, a patron of the charity Spotlight YOPD, for those with young-onset Parkinson's disease, takes Sinemet, a branded version of a drug called co-careldopa, which helps manage tremors and stiffness. An alternative she is often forced to use is 'less effective', she says.
And when she can't get hold of rasagiline, another medication she takes to protect against nerve damage and slow the progression of her condition, the difference is stark. 'When the medication I'm taking is the right one and is working, it's the difference between being able to move or not,' she explains. '.
