Parkinson's UK Shrewsbury Branch Update: A Talk from Dr Suzy Thompson

Shrewsbury chair Maggie Connell writes:

We’ve been incredibly fortunate to get some good speakers along to our meetings; and Dr Suzy Thompson proved to be one of the best when she came along to give us a talk in the Spring of this year (2025). 

Many of us know Dr Suzy, as she is the leading specialist in the Care of the Older Adult in our local health trust.  (Because Parkinson’s is the commonest neurological disease affecting people over 60, around half of people with Parkinson's are actually looked after by elderly care specialists. As Dr Suzy explained, it is a holistic approach.)

The local NHS trust has a small but experienced team of people attending to the needs of Parkinson’s people. Alongside Dr Suzy, there are Dr Capps, and a newcomer to the trust, Dr King.There are also two Parkinson’s’- specialist nurses, Jo Dorling and Georgina Hughes, who came along to the meeting too, to support Dr Suzy.  We were very happy to welcome them.

Talk

Dr Suzy spoke for around forty minutes, and it was engrossing to hear what she had to say.  She was both honest and entertaining!

Suzy told us that she comes from London and had never really intended to stay in Shropshire.  However, after the birth of her third child, she realised she really didn’t want to leave. She had grown to love it here - just as her friends had told her she would...

She admitted that some people found it hard to accept a diagnosis of Parkinson’s. However, pointing to Jo and Georgina, she said that people had a great resource in the nurses, of whom they could ask all sorts of questions. 

She also said that the body of knowledge in the booklets put out by Parkinson's UK (available through the Shrewsbury branch) was a brilliant tool. Drug treatment was now very effective, too.  She said that 20 years ago, there were really only two tablets to work with, whereas now there is a broader choice, although there is no absolute right tablet for everyone. Levodopa (aka Madopar) is still the main drug out there, but others can work well for the right person. 

Discussing drugs, Dr Thompson said that there is no drug without side effects and advised against reading the small print on the pack (at which there was a lot of laughter!) She paused to tell a story of her own adult daughter who had recently sent her a photo of her eyes, convinced that she had a brain tumour… Dr Thompson had to reassure her that she did not. 

It is true, she said, that some dopamine agents can lead to compulsive behaviour, but she's only seen that in very high doses;  she believes lower doses (2 or 3) control Parkinson's better anyway. However, if one became concerned about possible side effects, the best course of action was to consult the pharmacist first.

Doctor Thompson stressed that, when we are constipated (a Parkinson’s symptom), the drugs can't work properly.  It's important therefore to avoid constipation, if at all possible, by eating vegetables and drinking a lot of water.  Admittedly, taking more vegetables and water can in itself cause issues for men, in the prostate, but not to do so causes a bad loop.

Suzy believes that, with good medication, it is possible to slow down the progress of chronic disease considerably, helping people stay well and able to enjoy a good life, whether that means time doing gardening or doing embroidery. It's all about the quality of life.

But, she said, sadly she can't take away Parkinson's. She reminded us that there's no magic operation to cut it out. 

Dr Suzy is, however, convinced that more treatments will continue to be developed.  She referenced the way that huge changes have been made in the way heart conditions have been dealt with. When she first became a doctor in 1993 that was not the case – but now people are almost brought back to life again!

Keeping active is essential

Suzy did stress more than once that one can’t just rely on tablets. It is imperative to keep moving and to eat healthily. She mentioned that research has been done which proves that people with Parkinson's can improve so much in this way. Dr Thompson was herself given exercise to add to her routine after she had an injury, and while she found it difficult at first, when it became part of her daily routine, it worked.

Dr Thompson also told an amusing story of one of her patients who had difficulty with mobility.  He told her he had bought a riser/recliner chair, which he said helped him get up. However, his wife chipped in to say that that meant he no longer got up out of his chair!

Suzy stressed again that activity was really important.

Diagnosis 

Suzy talked about the problems of diagnosis. There isn't a perfect test for Parkinson’s (not even with a DAT scan, which was at one time supposed to provide a definite answer).  Suzy says she even finds herself saying sometimes: "I'm not a bad doctor, really ... but this time, I can't say for sure...time is often the most helpful thing for those patients, when a diagnosis is not straight forward"

Dr Thompson then went on to discuss non-motor symptoms. When she sees people in clinic, she works down the body, from top to toe, looking first for possible symptoms in the head.

She tries to cover as many aspects as possible - which is difficult in a 20-minute/half hour appointment!  For example things she wants to check are memory, swallowing, saliva, speech/language, indigestion and bowels (including constipation).   She uses the checklist recommended by Parkinson's UK and NICE; and literally works her way down the body.

Conclusion

Dr Suzy is an incredibly positive person and doctor.  She finished her talk by saying that, following the great strides forward in prevention of heart disease, attention is now turning to the brain. Treatments for multiple sclerosis, motor neurone disease and, of course, Parkinson’s are on the horizon, she believes.

It was marvellous to end the talk on a high, and there was sustained applause! In fact Dr Suzy was not able to leave for a while, as so many people had so many questions for her.  A question-and-answer session finished the meeting.

Many thanks to Dr Suzy, and to Jo and Georgina for taking time out of their very busy schedules to come and see us.  Everyone learnt a good deal. As well as that, it was very comforting to know that one of our specialists is such an approachable person.