Doctor Ron Daniels has highlighted the key warning signs to look out for if someone is affected by sepsis, following the incredible return to Parliament by "bionic MP" Craig Mackinlay.
The Conservative MP has opened up on his sepsis diagnosis after having both hands and feet amputated.
Speaking exclusively to GB News, Mackinlay recalled how the loss of blood supply to his limbs caused them to "turn black" while his body "went blue".
Mackinlay explained: "Everything was starting to shut down. My fingers were fixed into a clenched fist. I could move a couple of toes in my left leg. They could have maybe saved a bit of a foot but my surgeon said I would be far better having them off.
Dr Ron Daniels revealed that Sepsis is a bigger killer than breast cancer
Getty / GB News
"I was told I could have prosthetics and I would walk far better with them."
Speaking to GB News, Doctor Ron Daniels revealed the condition "affects nearly a quarter of a million people across the UK each year and claims 48,000 lives".
Dr Daniels also revealed that in comparison to breast cancer, sepsis is "four times more prolific as a killer" than the disease, which claims 11,000 lives a year.
Highlighting why the infection isn't as widely spoken about as cancer, Dr Daniels said sepsis "doesn't really belong to any particular speciality of doctors", and touches "every aspect of healthcare".
Dr Daniels explained: "There's no professional group championing it. It needs an advocacy organisation."
Tory MP Craig Mackinlay has opened up about his own experience with Sepsis
GB News
When asked by host Isabel Webster if the condition is hard to spot, Dr Daniels warned that it is "incredibly" difficult to be detected.
LATEST DEVELOPMENTS:
Dr Daniel told GB News: "My professional background is an intensive care doctor. And I do empathise with the view that it can be really hard to spot.
"It arises in people of any age, whether or not they've got underlying illness, and it can arise as a consequence of any infection. So it presents hugely differently."
When asked for the key signs and symptoms to look out for, Dr Daniel revealed: "There are six key symptoms to look for, and they spell the word sepsis - S for slurred speech or confusion, E for extreme pain in the muscles or joints, P for passing no urine, no water in a day, S for severe breathlessness, I for it feels like I'm going to die.
"And people really do say that. And then the final S is for skin that's mottled or discoloured or very pale. Any one of those six in the context of infection, it's go straight to A&E."
Dr Ron Daniels has revealed the key signs and symptoms to look out for
GB News
Dr Daniel offered his advice for how someone with sepsis may feel in the early stages, and implored those who feel they may have it to see a doctor and get it diagnosed.
Dr Daniel advised: "It can look a bit like flu, and in that situation it's trust your instinct.
"You've probably had infections before, you know what it feels like, but if something doesn't feel right, and particularly if you've never felt so unwell before, go see a GP and just ask could it be Sepsis.
"To get this right demands not only that we have health professionals who are well trained and have access to the right diagnostics to make the diagnosis, but also members of the public who've heard of sepsis know it's an emergency and know when and how to access healthcare."
