Scientists can now predict if people are going to die in the next five years

Scientists can now predict if you are at risk of dying in the next five years.
A simple marker in the blood can detect the building blocks of cancer, chronic heart disease and other serious health conditions in the middle-aged.

The test and results are far more accurate that previous procedures using a similar biomarker.
The study, published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal, found that a marker known as IL-6 is more accurate in assessing the risk of mortality, both short and long-term, than the previously used 1-acid glycoprotein (AGP).
Interleukin-6 (IL-6) is a chemical produced when the body is suffering inflammation, it is also responsible for fever in autoimmune, infectious or non-infectious disease.

A marker in blood can reveal the risk of cancer, heart disease and other serious health problems (Photo: Getty)

The study included data collected between 1997 and 1999 on 6545 men and women aged 45-69 years.
Participants were followed to 2015 to determine if they had died.
Professor Archana Singh-Manoux, from University College London, said: “The novelty of our approach lies in being able to assess risk of mortality in the short- and long-term.

“Our findings show IL-6, which is already known to be important to heart disease, to do better than AGP.

The test will enable experts to be more accurate about mortality (Photo: Getty)

“Research on biomarkers is progressing fast, and it is important to undertake checks like in the one in our study, to shape future research on biomarkers.”



Dr Paul Ridker, from the Centre for Cardiovascular Disease Prevention at Harvard Medical School, said: “Biomarker discovery is crucial for thinking about new treatment targets.
“With regard to AGP, CRP and IL-6, what remains uncertain is whether reducing inflammation can reduce cardiovascular event rates.”