The
ability to predict how long someone is likely to live would help doctors tailor
treatment plans. A new study looking at biomarkers in the blood concludes that
more accurately estimating mortality might soon be possible.
As
it stands, doctors can predict mortality within the final year of life with
some degree of accuracy.
However,
predicting it over longer periods — such as 5–10 years — is not yet possible.
A
group of scientists who recently published a paper in the journal Nature Communicationshope
that they are now on the path toward developing a reliable predictive tool.
They
believe that a blood test might one day be able to predict whether someone is
likely to live 5 or 10 more years. The authors explain that this would help
doctors make important treatment decisions.
For
instance, they would be able to ascertain if an older adult is healthy enough
to have surgery, or help identify those in most need of medical intervention.
A
test like this might also benefit clinical trials: Scientists could monitor how
an intervention impacts mortality risk without having to run trials until
enough people die.
Predicting longevity
Currently, blood pressure and cholesterol levels
can give doctors an impression of a person's likely lifespan. However, in older
adults, these measures become less useful.
Counterintuitively,
for people aged 85 or over, higher blood pressure and higher cholesterol levelsare linked with lower mortality
risk.
Scientists
from Brunel University London in the United Kingdom and Leiden University
Medical Center in the Netherlands set out to identify any biomarkers in the
blood that might help tackle this issue.
Their study is the largest
of its kind, taking data from 44,168 people ages 18–109. During the study's
follow-up period, 5,512 of these people died.
The
team initially identified metabolic markers associated with mortality. From
this information, they created a scoring system to predict when a person might
die.
Next,
the researchers compared the reliability of the scoring system with that of a
model based on standard risk factors. To do this, they studied data from a
further 7,603 individuals, 1,213 of whom died during follow-up.
Mortality metabolites
After
whittling down a long list of metabolites, the researchers settled on 14
biomarkers independently associated with mortality.
Having
higher concentrations of some of the 14 biomarkers — including histidine,
leucine, and valine — is associated with decreased mortality.
Conversely,
having lower concentrations of others — such as glucose, lactate, and
phenylalanine — is associated with increased mortality.
The
scientists demonstrated that the combination of biomarkers could predict
mortality equally well in both males and females. They also tested their
findings across several age groups, concluding that "[a]ll 14 biomarkers
[...] showed consistent associations with mortality across all strata."
The biomarkers they identified are involved in a wide
range of processes in the body, including fluid balance and inflammation. Also,
scientists have already linked most of them to mortality risk in previous
studies.
However,
this was the first time that researchers have demonstrated their predictive
power when combined into one model.
This
study is just the next step along a path that might lead to a usable blood
test. However, the study authors feel encouraged:
"A score based on these 14 biomarkers and sex
leads to improved risk prediction as compared [with] a score based on
conventional risk factors."
Source: Medical News Today
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