‘This should not be ridiculed’: the link between hypochondria and early death

The findings of the study underscore the need for diagnosis and treatment. Photograph: Jeffrey Basinger/Newsday via Getty Images

In an English churchyard, the Irish comedian Spike Milligan’s gravestone has a chastening message for those who knew him: “I told you I was ill.”

We can all identify with Milligan’s concerns. Who hasn’t panic-researched supposed symptoms, fearing the worst? His joke speaks to our fear that legitimate health concerns will be shrugged off as nothing to worry about – “Oh, it’s just hypochondria.”