When I turned 50 in 2015, I made a conscious decision to have annual check-ups with my GP, just to make sure all my ‘vitals’ – heart rate, blood pressure, cholesterol – weren’t spiralling out of control.
But like many when COVID came along, that resolution fell by the wayside. The lockdown years, 2020 and 2021, both came and went, and by the time I’d reacquainted myself with my doctor, it was late 2022 and nearly three years had passed.
I was lucky. Most of my indicators were still good. Not everyone has been so fortunate, though.
As reported in YourLifeChoices last month, analysis of mortality data by the Actuaries Institute shows that more than 10,200 Australians died of ischemic heart disease in the first eight months of 2022. That’s about 17 per cent higher than would be expected in a normal year.
There’s little doubt that COVID played a part in that spike, but not just in the most obvious way. While the combination of having heart disease and contracting COVID has been a major factor, patients presenting to medical facilities at later stages of the disease – or dying before diagnosis – has also contributed to the increase.
Bruno Muraca, a leading personal insurance advocate with AFRM Claims Advocacy, says the ‘late presentation’ theory is backed up by the numbers.
“While we haven’t seen an increase in the number of heart disease claims, the heart disease condition seems to be a bit more progressed and severe for patients,” he said.
Heart disease is only part of the story. There has been an increase in the aggressiveness of breast cancer and prostate cancer diagnosis. Mr Muraca recently helped a patient who fell into this category.
George, aged 53, (not his real name) was discussing with his financial adviser ways of cutting costs in the lead-up to retirement and floated the idea of cancelling his health insurance.
He had been having regular check-ups before the pandemic and was feeling fit and well, so he’d dropped the habit. Fortunately for him, his adviser suggested he have a medical check-up first. That check-up revealed elevated PSA and eventually a ‘Gleason Score’ of 8, an indication of a high prostate cancer risk.
Confirmation of his diagnosis occurred in November last year and George is well on the road to recovery. But his story could have been very different.
Fortunately the cancer was contained, but the physical, emotional and financial stress of dealing with the diagnosis has taken its toll.
To alleviate the financial stress, Mr Muraca has assisted George with his personal insurance claim (default insurance in a superannuation fund), but there is a strong chance George would have avoided or minimised this stressful period had he maintained his regular GP visits.
The same goes for women, Mr Muraca says. “The numbers show that since the pandemic began, breast cancer screenings are down, and breast cancer cases are up.”
The moral of the story, especially for those over 50, says Mr Muraca, is to monitor your health closely in conjunction with your GP. He says the screening process for both prostate and breast cancer are far less invasive, and putting them off can have compounding consequences that exceed the challenges of prostatectomy or mastectomy – which in themselves are significant.
Have you stopped visiting your GP for regular health checks since the onset of the pandemic? Are you planning to start going again? Why not share your thoughts in the comments section below?
Also read: Vitamin link to virus death rate
