Fit for the Future: NHS 10-Year Health Plan for England: Why thousands of people at risk of hereditary brain aneurysms were left out of the 10-Year Health Plan, and what we’re doing next
- HBA Support
- Jul 10
- 2 min read
Updated: Jul 14
Up to 320,000 people in the UK are at increased risk of a brain aneurysm because of a family history. Yet the Government’s newly published Fit for the Future: 10-Year Health Plan for England makes no mention of brain aneurysms at all, hereditary or otherwise.
This silence speaks volumes.
Every year, over 5,000 people suffer a brain aneurysm rupture, and around 1,700 lose their lives. Many more are left to cope with life-changing impacts. And still, there is no dedicated clinical lead, no national care pathway, and no strategic plan to address this often silent but deadly condition.
We are deeply disappointed but not surprised. Despite our formal response to the consultation, and even acknowledgement from the former Public Health Minister that hereditary brain aneurysms remain under-recognised, our community has once again been left out.
What needs to change
Brain aneurysms are vascular in nature. They belong within the NHS’s new cardiovascular strategy, especially as up to 4% of all strokes are caused by ruptured aneurysms. Preventable deaths, delayed diagnoses and fragmented care are avoidable outcomes if only the system would look closer.
We’re calling for:
A clinical lead for brain aneurysms within the NHS
Inclusion in the cardiovascular service framework
Access to specialist support through tools like the NHS App
Greater investment in research, including further support for the world-leading ROAR Studies
Building momentum from missed opportunity
Although the plan overlooks us, it does introduce reforms that we intend to shape. A new national framework for cardiovascular disease could be a vehicle for long-overdue recognition. Promises around AI-led diagnostics and genomics align with the direction of aneurysm research. Plans for Neighbourhood Health Centres could offer a way to bring genetic counselling, mental health support and blood pressure monitoring closer to home.
The emphasis on patient empowerment, including the new Patient Choice Charter and expanded NHS App access, is something we strongly support. For too long, people affected by neurovascular conditions have felt powerless. That must change.
As founding members of the Vascular Voice Network, we are committed to building collaboration across vascular conditions. These diseases often present silently, affect similar systems, and face similar policy barriers, yet are rarely considered together. We believe this is an untapped solution.
This is not the end of our campaign. It’s a turning point.
We remain committed to partnership and action. In the months ahead, we will engage directly with policymakers, NHS leaders, clinicians and researchers to highlight the gaps this plan leaves behind — and to co-create the solutions that patients urgently need. By sharing lived experience and evidence, we aim to build a future where brain aneurysms are recognised, researched and properly resourced.
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