Jane Felstead, known to viewers as "Mummy Felstead" on the E4 reality show Made in Chelsea, has admitted that multiple sclerosis (MS) will kill her, but she is continuing to fight. The 74-year-old, who was diagnosed after decades of symptoms, now lives with the debilitating neurological disease, is in a wheelchair, and relies on carers for basic tasks.
Once a glamorous society figure surrounded by country houses and horses, Jane spent much of her inheritance on treatments that did not work. She now rents a flat in London and cannot afford to buy a home. "I'm very lucky. I managed to rent a nice flat in London, I can't afford to buy because of how expensive the treatment is that hasn't worked," she said.
A decades-long battle for a diagnosis
Jane believes she has suffered from the disease since she was 17, after experiencing her first episode, but doctors sent her home with tranquilisers. Over the years, she experienced fatigue, numbness, weakness and vision problems, yet doctors repeatedly failed to identify MS or offer an MRI. She temporarily lost her sight after giving birth to her daughter Binky in 1990 and was told she had optic neuritis.
It took decades before she was finally diagnosed in her 60s, after an MRI revealed numerous lesions on her brain. Her aunt had died with MS, but even her family initially attributed her symptoms to something else. "They used to think I was skiving. 'Mummy fancies a bit of attention', they would joke," she said.
Life with MS and the fight for mobility
Jane now has carers who come in four times a day, with two people needed to help her because she cannot transfer herself from her chair. Hammersmith and Fulham Council funds her care, something she says she is "terribly grateful" for. "I can't go onto the loo, which is the most awful thing in my life," she said. "It's the most degrading thing in the world. You lose your dignity completely."
Her grandchildren are one of her biggest reasons to keep fighting. After a recent fall that left her needing hospital treatment, she told her family in a video: "Here I am. I've pulled through again... I'll fight another day." She added that she had been "blue lighted" to hospital because medical staff were so concerned.
New hope from a new drug
Jane has been given fresh hope as NHS England has revealed that fampridine, a drug that helps people with MS to walk, is now set to become available for eligible people. "I'd like to believe I can take this drug and it'll make a difference," she said. "I would jump at the chance to give it a go." She says she can still feel her toes, adding: "No one notices it, but I can feel it. I can feel my toes, so there is something there."
Peter Lloyd, Policy Manager at the MS Society, said: "For too long, people have been forced to make the difficult choice between paying for fampridine privately, or not taking it at all. Fampridine is the only licensed MS treatment that helps improve walking ability and speed, and for some people it can be life-changing - allowing them to live more independently or stay in employment. So this is incredible news for the 120,000 people living with MS in England." He added that NHS England's recommendation does not mean instant access, and that MS services need support to make fampridine available to everyone who could benefit.
