Dementia patients are being let down at every stage of their care in a failing system that would never be tolerated for cancer or heart disease, a landmark report warns today.
New findings by the Alzheimer's Society – released in partnership with the Daily Mail's Defeating Dementia campaign – lay bare a crisis of staggering scale. From first symptoms to diagnosis, patients wait an average of 3.5 years.
One in five patients say they received no support after diagnosis, with families describing being 'released into the wild'. Meanwhile only half of those prescribed dementia medication remain on it for a year, despite benefits of continued treatment.
Michelle Dyson, chief executive of the Alzheimer's Society, said the comparison with cancer care should shame the nation.
'Dementia care in the UK is stuck in a system of delay, denial and neglect,' says Ms Dyson. 'In the digital age of instant answers, people are still waiting far too long for a diagnosis of the country's biggest killer. That would never be tolerated in cancer care, yet for dementia it has become routine.
'At every stage, people are missed. Symptoms are missed, diagnosis is delayed, and support often comes too late to be that lifeline so desperately needed by people with dementia and their loved ones.'
Around one million people in the UK are living with dementia, a figure set to reach 1.4 million by 2040. The condition already costs Britain £42 billion a year – projected to more than double to £90 billion within fifteen years.
But according to the Alzheimer's Society new report, Unlocking the Door, patients are regularly failed by the NHS.
The leading charity also found that newly-diagnosed dementia patients on average wait more than 5 months before they are referred to a specialist memory clinic.
Only a third of patients are offered cognitive stimulation therapy – group activity sessions that are proven to memory, mood and daily functioning skills.
The charity also says that access to diagnosis, treatment and social care services varies depending on postcode.
The findings come almost a year after NHS spending chiefs rejected two new dementia drugs. Lecanemab and donanemab are the first-ever medicines proven to slow the progression of the disease.
However, in June 2025, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) rejected them for NHS use in England and Wales, arguing the cost of implementing them was 'substantially higher' than considered acceptable for taxpayers' money.
In March, NICE agreed to look again at the evidence supporting the rollout of lecenameb and donanemab.
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The Alzheimer's Society is now calling on the Government to introduce clear national targets, a structured care pathway and equal access to treatment regardless of postcode, ethnicity or income.
'This is not a backlog problem,' says Michelle Dyson. 'It is a system that is missing people at every stage and while the system waits, dementia progresses - stealing time, independence and dignity. While politicians race to cut waiting lists, people with dementia aren't even in the queue. Government action can't wait.'
NHS England and the Department of Health and Social care have been approached for comment.
WHAT IS DEMENTIA?
Dementia is an umbrella term used to describe a range of progressive neurological disorders, that is, conditions affecting the brain.
There are many different types of dementia, of which Alzheimer’s disease is the most common.
Some people may have a combination of types of dementia.
Regardless of which type is diagnosed, each person will experience their dementia in their own unique way.
Dementia is a global concern but it is most often seen in wealthier countries, where people are likely to live into very old age.
HOW MANY PEOPLE ARE AFFECTED?
The Alzheimer’s Society reports there are more than 1million people living with dementia in the UK today, of which more than 500,000 have Alzheimer's.
It is estimated that the number of people living with dementia in the UK by 2040 will rise to more than 1.4million.
In the US, it's estimated there are 5.5million Alzheimer's sufferers. A similar percentage rise is expected in the coming years.
As a person’s age increases, so does the risk of them developing dementia.
Rates of diagnosis are improving but many people with dementia are thought to still be undiagnosed.
IS THERE A CURE?
Currently there is no cure for dementia. But new drugs can slow down its progression and the earlier it is spotted the more effective treatments are.