Approved Research

Testing the prognostic ability of a novel biomarker diagnostic score of liver fibrosis in long-term health outcomes for the general population.

Lay summary

Liver disease is one of the top causes of premature mortality and health inequalities worldwide. Its risk factors include viral infections, alcohol consumption, obesity, and diabetes. It is a slowly progressing disease that is asymptomatic until the latest stages. Most liver disease patients do not know about their condition and do not seek care to halt progression.

Because of the abovementioned factors, identifying and diagnosing patients early on is important to improve population health and reduce inequalities. In the present project we will test the prognostic ability of a newly developed diagnostic algorithm, which includes measurements of variables routinely collected in blood samples, to predict future outcomes related to liver disease, including liver-related hospitalizations, liver cancer incidence, liver-related and overall mortality. The ability to predict these outcomes can be later used to tailor interventions for patients at risk of further developing cirrhosis, and ultimately preventing their progression.