SIR – Experiencing signs of dementia can be worrying enough for people and their families without the agonising wait for help.

At the moment the 800,000 people living with dementia can face a dual challenge – firstly getting a diagnosis from a specialist memory clinic followed by the wait for the support that can help them live well with the condition.

In the best performing areas, referral to a memory clinic can be as little as 24 hours.

In the worst, it could be nine months. We need to make sure the postcode lottery for waiting times become a thing of the past.

Things are beginning to change for the better. Thanks to the work of Alzheimer’s Society campaigners there is commitment to a maximum referral of three months but there is still more to do.

Ensuring that more people get a diagnosis of dementia earlier is a key priority for our campaigners.

We need to tackle the parts of the system which block this.

To find out how you can help, visit alzheimers.org.uk/ earlydiagnosis.

I have had the heartbreak of watching my mother fading away before my eyes – it was the most souldestroying experience of my life.

Even losing my dear father to cancer some 30 years earlier was not as harrowing as the symptoms of Lewy bodies dementia my mother manifested.

MOIRA BARDELL

Droitwich