Scientists have developed a blood test that can predict whether someone is going to die in the next decade. Specialists in Germany discovered more than a dozen biomarkers in blood that are believed to influence the risk of death. The breakthrough was made after testing 44,000 people, analysing 14 factors, such as immunity and glucose control.
Using the information gathered during the trial, they were able to predict - with 83 percent accuracy - whether someone was going to die in the next 2 to 16 years.
The study was published in the Nature Communications journal. During the trial, researchers from the Max Planck Institute for Biology of Ageing analysed the blood of thousands of adults, with ages ranging from 18 to 109 years old. All of those who took part in the trial were of European descent and were taken from 12 other studies.
They were first tested on conventional factors of death, such as their BMI, blood pressure, smoking, etc. Then academics used the biomarkers from the new blood test. Participants were given a score ranging from minus two to three - the higher the number, the more likely a person is going to die sooner.
Follow-up tests over the next 2 to 16 years found that more than 5,000 of the participants had died. The new test had predicted their risk of death with 83 percent accuracy - better than the 79 percent accuracy of current tests.
Currently, doctors can predict whether a patient is going to die in the next year, but predicting a patient's risk over the next 10 years is much trickier. It is hoped that this recent set of positive results will help specialists improve how someone is treated for their medical condition.
Using the information gathered during the trial, they were able to predict - with 83 percent accuracy - whether someone was going to die in the next 2 to 16 years.
They were first tested on conventional factors of death, such as their BMI, blood pressure, smoking, etc. Then academics used the biomarkers from the new blood test. Participants were given a score ranging from minus two to three - the higher the number, the more likely a person is going to die sooner.
Follow-up tests over the next 2 to 16 years found that more than 5,000 of the participants had died. The new test had predicted their risk of death with 83 percent accuracy - better than the 79 percent accuracy of current tests.
