Scientists can now predict if you might be struck by disease which kills 11,000 a year
Liver disease breakthrough as scientists can now work out person’s risk in seconds
- Scientists have developed a calculator, the Cirrhosis Outcome Risk Estimator (CORE), to predict an individual's risk of severe liver disease within 10 years.
- The CORE calculator requires a simple blood test to determine enzyme levels, which are then entered alongside the user's age and sex.
- Developed by researchers from Karolinska Institutet and universities in Finland, the model is highly accurate, differentiating between those who develop the disease and those who do not in nearly nine out of 10 cases.
- The calculator is currently available online for medical professionals and the public, with hopes for its eventual rollout in hospitals and clinics to facilitate earlier detection.
- This innovation is crucial as liver disease, which often presents without early symptoms, kills over 11,000 people in the UK annually, with 90 per cent of cases being preventable.