Christine Jennings on hunger strike

PRESS RELEASE 19 Feb 2005

Re Christine Jennings:

Lyme Disease Action, LDA, the new UK charity for Lyme Disease, Lyme
Borreliosis and associated disease, has been extremely concerned to hear of
the case of Christine Jennings. The charity feels that serious but
undiagnosed cases of Lyme Disease do exist in the UK. Many
people have
contacted us with serious symptoms suggestive of Lyme Disease and their
complaints have not been taken seriously within the current diagnostic
system. The current officers of the charity have all been victims of this
system in the past and have had to go elsewhere for
diagnosis and for
crucial early treatment. If it were not for this treatment, which initially
had to be obtained outside the NHS, several of the personnel of this charity
would have been totally unable to do their present jobs. As it is, we
gained early treatment and recovered. Many
at LDA look at the case of
Christine Jennings and think “there but for the grace of God go I”. We are
aware that some government information on this issue has already been
released but we are dissatisfied with it and we shall be lobbying hard for
the information given out on this
disease to be changed and updated in the
light of new findings that are frequently being published about this
potentially devastating disease. Early symptoms include extreme malaise and
weakness, joint pain, digestive upset, headache, flu-like symptoms, poor
sleep and disturbances
of the central nervous system. However, the disease
is not a virus but a bacterial disease and potentially treatable.

Stephanie Woodcock

Chair, Lyme Disease Action
Registered Charity 1100448