FOR Diane Walton, much of the past two decades have been spent looking after her seriously ill mum Pamela.
Together with her husband Stuart, Diane has been the main carer for her 90-year-old mum, who suffers with lung disease, allergies and has, in the past, had strokes.
Her devotion to caring for her mother is an act few people have witnessed but it was thrown under the spotlight yesterday in the Carers’ Service at Derby Cathedral.
Carers Week study found 40% of carers had put off receiving medical treatment because of the pressure of role
Nearly half of unpaid carers in the UK are jeopardising their health due to a lack of support, according to a survey.
Carried out by Carers Week, a group of eight charities including Age UK, Carers UK and Macmillan Cancer Support, the survey found that 40% of carers had put off receiving medical treatment because of the pressures of their role.
A mother from Northern Ireland who has cared for her severely disabled son for almost 20 years has joined calls for carers to be given more support.
Tracey Sloan has been describing how she put her own health at risk because of the strain of looking after her son Philip who has cerebral palsy.
She postponed a cancer check-up because there was no-one to look after him, but was later diagnosed with the disease.
Her call comes as a survey found carers are sacrificing their own health.
Difficult
The study, carried out to mark Carers Week, suggested that 40% of people who look after family members or close friends put off their own medical treatment in order to meet the needs of those for whom they care.
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