标题: Test for liver damage uses blood sample instead of biopsy [打印本页] 作者: StephenW 时间: 2012-1-31 21:27 标题: Test for liver damage uses blood sample instead of biopsy
Siemens has developed a new test for diagnosing liver damage that requires only a bloodsample instead of a biopsy.
The Enhanced Liver Fibrosis test is not only less invasive andpainful than the biopsy -- which involves the removal of a smallamount of liver tissue -- but it also takes just an hourinstead of a week. The test was developed by Siemens Healthcare incollaboration with University College London.
Liver fibrosis is the scarring of the liver tissue associatedwith chronic liver damage and can be caused by alcoholism, fattyliver disease or viralhepatitis. It can lead to cirrhosis or cancer of the liver over the long term.
The ELF Test looks for three blood serum biomarkers: hyaluronicacid, procollagen III N-terminal propeptide, and the tissueinhibitor metalloproteinase. These biomarkers are involved in theformation of fibrosis. In the test, reagents react with thebiomarkers and generate light in the process. The more lightgenerated, the more biomarkers are present.
The test then uses an algorithm to convert the results of thethree biomarkers into a score that indicates the degree of fibrosis--slight, moderate or serious. Patients with slight or moderatefibrosis are unlikely to display any other symptoms, so doctors canintervene and prevent further liver damage.
The ELF Test has been in development since 1997, when a group ofinvestigators led by Professor Michael Arthur embarked on a projectto identify serum markers of liver fibrosis. The project recruitedmore than 1,000 patients who were having a liver biopsy and tookblood samples at the same time. This process helped to identify thethree relevant markers.
