Health
Blood Test May Predict Women’s Heart Disease Risk Decades Ahead
Recent research suggests that a single blood test could predict a woman’s risk of heart disease up to 30 years in advance.
Published in The New England Journal of Medicine and presented at the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) Congress, the study offers promising insights into long-term heart health prediction.
The study involved nearly 30,000 women, with an average age of 55, who underwent a blood test in 1993.
This test measured two types of fat in the bloodstream and a specific protein, and the participants’ health was monitored over a 30-year period.
Dr. Paul Ridker, the lead study author and director of the Center for Cardiovascular Disease Prevention at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, stated:
“The strongest predictor of risk was a simple blood measure of inflammation known as high sensitivity C-reactive protein, or hsCRP, followed by cholesterol and lipoprotein(a).”
He emphasized the significance of these findings, noting:
“Knowing all three predicted risks not just at five or 10 years, but at 20 and 30 years, gives us a road map for how to target specific therapies for the individual patient, rather than an overly simple ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach.”
C-reactive protein (CRP), produced by the liver, increases with inflammation and indicates a higher risk of heart disease.
LDL cholesterol, often referred to as “bad” cholesterol, can accumulate in the arteries, elevating the risk of heart attack or stroke.
Additionally, lipoprotein(a), or Lp(a), is a type of LDL cholesterol that also contributes to plaque buildup in arteries.
Dr. Ridker highlighted:
“This is a large, convincing study that puts together three predictive blood tests that haven’t been looked at in this way before.”
The study found that women with the highest levels of LDL cholesterol had a 36% increased risk of heart disease compared to those with the lowest levels.
Those with the highest levels of Lp(a) had a 33% greater risk.
Women with the highest levels of CRP faced a 70% increased risk.
Moreover, women with elevated levels of all three measures were 1½ times more likely to experience a stroke and over three times as likely to develop coronary heart disease.
Despite the importance of these measures, Dr. Ridker pointed out:
“While most doctors measure cholesterol, very few measure hsCRP and Lp(a).”
He added:
“It is a truism of medicine that doctors will not treat what they do not measure.”
The ability of a single blood test to predict risk 30 years later is described by Ridker as “astonishing.”
He remarked:
“It tells us how much silent risk we simply are unaware of, and gives us an opportunity to start preventive efforts far earlier in life.”
Dr. Marc Siegel, a senior medical analyst for Fox News and clinical professor of medicine at NYU Langone Medical Center, praised the study, stating it is a “big step forward” in using blood tests to determine a woman’s cardiac risk.
Siegel noted:
“This is a large, convincing study that puts together three predictive blood tests that haven’t been looked at in this way before.”
He further explained:
“Since inflammation can cause heart attacks, it is confirmatory that an elevated inflammation marker (CRP) conveys a 70% increased risk for heart disease.”
Siegel also mentioned that LDL and Lp(a) have been previously linked to an increased risk of heart disease.
Looking ahead, Siegel envisions that blood markers like these will be combined with artificial intelligence to assess heart disease and stroke risk.
Based on the study’s findings, Ridker advises patients to ask their doctors to measure hsCRP and Lp(a).
“The time has come for our guidelines to change,” he asserted.
Ridker observed that women often seem less concerned about heart disease than men.
He explained:
“Unfortunately, our traditional screening guidelines rarely identify at-risk women until they are in their late 60s or 70s. Yet prevention must start in our 30s and 40s for it to be most effective.”
Preventive measures should initially focus on a heart-healthy diet, regular exercise, smoking cessation, and stress management.
However, some patients may require drug therapies to reduce inflammation and lower cholesterol levels.
The researchers acknowledged that the study’s main limitation was its focus on health professionals.
Ridker noted:
“Yet in other settings, we know this is also true for men — and, if anything, an even greater concern for minority individuals.”
The research received funding from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI), and the National Cancer Institute (NCI).
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