The two vital DIY tests you must take to protect against killer heart attacks, reveals a leading cardiologist - plus the five other surprising steps to help keep your safe Heart and circulatory diseases affect more people than cancer and dementia combined, with around 2.3million in the UK living with coronary heart disease It is not just older patients who can suffer heart attacks - around 26,000 people under the age of 75 die as a result of them every year By Dr Sundip Patel Published: 11:51 BST, 19 September 2024 | Updated: 12:30 BST, 19 September 2024 e-mail View comments Heart disease kills twice as many women as breast cancer each year in the UK and leads to more than 173,000 deaths – that’s almost the equivalent of the entire population of the city of Oxford. So what are YOU doing to protect yourself from it? The answer is probably ‘not much’ – as, typically, it is dementia or cancer that top the polls of the diseases that people fear the most and actively try to avoid.
But heart and circulatory diseases affect more people than cancer and dementia combined, with around 2.3 million people in the UK living with coronary heart disease, the most common form. This is where arteries clog with a build-up of fatty deposits – or plaque.
This plaque can break off and block blood flow to the heart, leading to a heart attack. Heart disease can be a problem for those of all ages – any amount of plaque poses a risk. It is not just older patients who can suffer life-thre.