Queen Camilla’s personal connection to osteoporosis and her advocacy for awareness

presented the first Queen’s Award for Osteoporosis during a reception at Clarence House on Thursday, October 3.

Previously known as the Duchess of Cornwall’s Award since its inception in 2009, the award is given to an individual in recognition for an outstanding contribution to treatment, research and leadership in the field of osteoporosis.As President of the Royal Osteoporosis Society, Camilla, 77, following the royal family’s summer break at Balmoral, presented this year’s newly renamed award to Dr Nicola Peel.As a consultant with more than 30 years’ experience, Dr Peel developed a new assessment model to help improve the evaluation of people at risk of fractures which has since been implemented by other NHS clinics nationwide.She played a leading role in securing the commitment to universal Fracture Liaison Services, which play an important role in identifying, assessing and treating osteoporosis.

At the reception, Camilla thanked campaigners and volunteers and encouraged them to continue their work to raise awareness and improve treatment for patients with the condition.The Queen has supported the Royal Osteoporosis Society, the UK’s largest national charity dedicated to improving bone health and beating osteoporosis, since 1994.

Queen Camilla previously revealed that as she urged the elderly to get checked out for the “devastating” bone disease.Camilla said her relatives had the condition during a time when it was “rarely diagnosed” and “seldom discussed”.

Her Majesty said: “Both my grandmother and my mother died as a result of osteoporosis.”At the time, the disease was seldom discussed, rarely diagnosed and was usually acknowledged as an unavoidable part of growing older.”Now, thankfully, we know far more about the causes, symptoms and available treatments.”Queen Camilla went on to encourage the elderly to “discover the easy steps that we can all take to improve bone health throughout our lives”.