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Ms Dari Taylor: I am finding the way in which the hon. Gentleman is presenting his argument very engaging, but I want to ask a specific question. At that stage, he was invited to go to Oxford—probably to the Radcliffe hospital—and not asked to remain in his local NHS hospital. Is he suggesting—I would most definitely think this relevant if he were—that the some people's expertise is greater than others and that it is time that that was more acknowledged and more utilised in the NHS?
Mr. Jones: That is a really good point. There are certain centres of expertise, and, yes, we should make more use of them. In fact, I should like to see more centres of expertise in local communities. People in my constituency either have to go to Oxford or Bristol if they have a serious condition. What happened in my case was that, during the angiogram, I suffered another heart attack on the operating table. There was no pain. I did not know about it, and the doctors and nurses did not tell me. Frankly, I might have panicked if they had.
Ms Taylor: Does the hon. Gentleman agree that certain cardiac specialists have greater knowledge than others and that that should be clearly understood in the NHS?
Mr. Jones: Yes, and not only the knowledge, but the equipment varies. There is far more equipment at the
Radcliffe hospital in Oxford and, indeed, at the Bristol royal infirmary, where I went later, than in Cheltenham. I should like to see more equipment in the local community, which is something that we can campaign for.Where was I? I had just had my second heart attack. I had tubes in me, and the cardiologist told my wife, "We're having terrible trouble with him. He won't behave at all." To which she replied, "Nothing new there, then." The angiogram had turned into an emergency procedure—an angioplasty, where a balloon is inserted into the artery and inflated, and a piece of titanium mesh, called a stent, is inserted into the artery to keep it open. Astonishing though it may sound, the heart does not seem to object to titanium. In fact, I am told that, once it is in place, new cells grow on the inside of the stent. I was only the second person to have an angioplasty at Cheltenham general hospital, but it has since become a routine operation, so perhaps some good came of my experience.
It appears that one of my arteries had a problem that my cardiologist believes is a genetic fault, which is relevant to the Bill. It was something that I had inherited from my father, who died from a heart attack in 1985. It is possible that my children may also carry that genetic fault. In other words, there is a family history of cardiac problems. That is why the Bill is so important. We have already heard heart-rending stories about young people who have died suddenly. We all share the grief of their families. We were all struck particularly by the death of Marc-Vivien Foe, the talented Cameroon footballer. I know what it is like to lose someone close to me. Colleagues will know that, four years ago, I lost a close friend, Andrew Pennington, during an attack in my constituency office. That was a ghastly experience, both physically and emotionally, and the scars remain, but to lose a son or daughter, sister or brother, mother or father, wife or husband must be so much worse. I do not want to think about the anguish that I would feel if any of my children were to die before me, particularly knowing, as I do, that there is a family history of cardiac problems.
I could go on to tell the House about the further incidence of breathlessness that I suffered last April. There seems to be some appetite for me to do so. It was not a heart attack this time, but something called flash oedema, which presents similar symptoms. Again, an ambulance was called and arrived swiftly. Again, I walked to the vehicle and was taken to the hospital. Again, I lost consciousness, and my poor wife was told, by the same person as before, to prepare herself for the worst. I was unconscious for 12 hours, and I woke up with a horrible tube down my throat and a machine breathing for me. It was one of the most unpleasant experiences that I have ever had.
I was kept in hospital for two weeks, including being transferred to the Bristol royal infirmary, where I underwent a number of further tests. Those tests included another angiogram, which discovered that my stent is working well; several ECGs, which the hon. Lady has discussed; an echocardiogram; and, worst of all, a 40-minute MRI scan, where the patient lies in a
tunnel and pictures are taken. In my case, the pictures were of my heart and kidneys. I do not normally get claustrophobic, but an MRI scan is just awful.
Ms Taylor: The hon. Gentleman is very generous in giving way; but, again, I need to ask this question, and I am looking forward to hearing the answer. He is explaining in some detail the care and responses of medics to his conditions, and we are all impressed. We are all delighted—it is such a pleasure to see him looking so well on the Floor of the House today—but does he accept that, if he were 22 and not over 40, the responses to his conditions might have been significantly less?
Mr. Jones: The hon. Lady is very generous to say that I am over 40—it is a bit more than that, actually—but she is right about inverted ageism, which might have affected me if I had been 22, rather than 50-something, at the time.
After all those tests, no reason could be found for the event last April, which is a bit worrying. It was definitely cardiac-related, but my cardiologist was unable to say what caused it or that it would not happen again. If I suddenly sit down, it may be happening again. He suggested that it might be "an occasional electrical fault", which made me sound like an old Vauxhall a friend of mine once owned. Regular checks are continuing, including daily blood pressure tests, which I carry out myself. I am currently taking five types of medication, some of which the hon. Lady mentioned. They including a medicine to control the atrial fibrillation; a mild diuretic to stop a build-up of fluid; a statin to control cholesterol; a calcium channel blocker—its role has been explained to me many times, but I still do not quite understand what it does—and an anti-coagulate to thin the blood. It is likely that I will have to take those tablets for the rest of my life.
I asked my doctor how ill I was on a scale of one to 10, where 10 was falling over completely. He told me that when I came in to the surgery, I scored nine and a half, but that I was now probably about two. One doctor who took my blood pressure said, "Oh, you've got blood pressure to die for", which I thought was an inappropriate description in the circumstances. Another doctor explained that the recovery time for a broken limb is six months, and that it is six months for a heart attack too. I had two heart attacks, and it took me a year to recover. Colleagues may have noticed, although it is more likely that they were too busy with their own work, that I was not around Westminster much during that year of recovery. Of course, I came here for the key debates and votes, especially on Iraq, but during my recovery, I followed to the letter the advice that I was given by my cardiologist and those in the splendid cardiac rehabilitation team in Cheltenham, who told me that if I continued working the same number of hours, I was going to kill myself. They are not too impressed by the lifestyle that Members of Parliament endure.
I must say that my colleagues, including my party leader and Chief Whip, were wonderfully understanding and supportive. That is unusual for a Chief Whip. My staff worked tremendously well, making sure that we dealt with all the constituency case work. I also received numerous "get well" wishes from my constituents, and it all helped with the recovery.
I simply do not know how much my treatment has cost the NHS. It certainly cost many thousands of pounds. The titanium stent alone cost £5,000—my wife says that it more than doubles my value—and there was also the time that the wonderful NHS staff put in, including ambulance paramedics, the doctors and nurses who resuscitated me twice and looked after me in hospital, and two cardiologists; we had only two cardiologists in Cheltenham, and at one stage, they were both working on me at the same time. They spent a considerable amount of time with me. Those involved also included the technical staff who analysed all the tests and the anaesthetist who told me that I snored. I spent a total of four weeks in hospital. The process must have cost thousands and thousands of pounds.
The point that I want to make to the Minister—perhaps she could pass it on to the Treasury—is that screening those at risk, who we know are at risk because it is likely that they have a genetically inherited condition, can avoid much of the expenditure involved in the treatments. Accepting the Bill would not only prevent a person from dying but help the Treasury, as that person would become economically active and might remain so for decades. That would benefit not only the person concerned, in living a full life, but the economy and the Treasury.
I believe that it is in the Government's economic interests to pass the Bill into law, and I hope that we will see its modest proposals accepted. It is sensible and the proposed measures should be best practice. It will prevent many tragedies and much emotional turmoil. It will save not only precious lives, but scarce resources, and the Government will win a lot of credit and gain a lot of friends by grasping this opportunity.
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