Daily Mail - 21.08.2019

Page 33

By Colin Fernandez

Science Correspondent

Blood test that

reveals if you’ll

die in a decade

SCIENTISTS have

devised a test that can

predict whether some-

one will live for another

five or ten years.

The test – which is 83 per

cent accurate – assesses

how long a patient is

expected to live by meas-

uring levels of 14 ‘biomark-

ers’ in the blood.

Taken together, the findings

could eventually lead to a

blood test that could warn

people they do not have long

to live – and encourage them

to adopt a healthier lifestyle.

Researchers tested 44,168

people aged between 18 and

109, of whom 5,512 people

died during their study.

The 14 biomarkers they

identified are compounds in

the blood linked to various

biological processes.

They include chemicals

linked to processing of fats

and proteins, as well as levels

of inflammation.

The scientists found the test

could predict with 83 per cent

accuracy whether someone

was likely to die in the next

five years and ten years.

The test is around 10 per

cent more accurate than

other existing predictors of

life expectancy, they said.

The researchers, Dr Joris

Deelen, of the Max Planck

Institute for Biology of Ageing

in Cologne, Germany, and

Professor Eline Slagboom, of

Leiden University in the Neth-

erlands, made clear that mor-

your physical vulnerability, if

it tells you how long you’ll

live, and your family see that

and you change your lifestyle,

you may live twice as long.’

The researchers say their

test could also be used in

medical research.

For instance, the effects of a

drug on a vulnerable patient

could be different to that on a

more robust patient with a

longer life expectancy.

Commenting on the

research, Dr Amanda Hesle-

grave, of UK Dementia

Research Institute at Univer-

sity College London, said:

‘The large numbers in this

study makes the data more

viable. However, it is limited

by the fact that being only

European data it may not

apply to other ethnic groups

without further studies.

‘Whilst this study shows

that this type of profiling can

be useful, they do point out

that it would need further

work to develop a score at the

individual level that would be

useful in real life situations.

So, it’s an exciting step, but

it’s not ready yet.’

‘Chance to change

your lifestyle’

Beginner’s luck as dad,

19, wins £120,000 lotto

Splashing out: Mr Lawton celebrates win yesterday with Connie Bell

TEENAGE father Sam Lawton couldn’t

believe his luck when he scooped

£120,000 with his first ever ticket.

The data analyst, 19, won the £10,000-

a-month for a year runner’s-up prize

on the Lotto’s new Set For Life game.

Yesterday Mr Lawton, who is yet to

pass his driving test, said a new BMW

was top of his spending wish list.

A deposit for a new home and a trip

to New York with girlfriend Connie

Bell, 20, are also high up.

Mr Lawton said: ‘The win will allow

me to learn to drive and get a car

straight away – which is amazing.’ Mr

Lawton, who lives with HR worker

Miss Bell in Leamington Spa, War-

wickshire, said the pair had already

been on a £1,000 clothes spree and

plan to spoil one-year-old son Noah.

The twice-weekly, £1.50-a-ticket Set

For Life game was launched in Janu-

ary for players who likes the ‘stabil-

ity of regular monthly payments’.

By Andy Dolan

Daily Mail, Wednesday, August 21, 2019

tality is not set in stone. Once

patients realise that they have

a poor life expectancy, they

could take steps to improve

their chances of living longer.

Dr Deelen said: ‘It’s a marker

of your current health and

physical vulnerability. The

test does not predict how

long you will live as you have

a hand in it yourself.

‘If the blood test indicates