Health
Women’s heart disease risk could be predicted up to 30 years in advance with one blood test, study finds
Predicting a woman’s future heart disease risk could be as simple as administering a single blood test to screen for three risk factors.
That’s according to research published in The New England Journal of Medicine on Saturday — research that was also presented at the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) Congress this weekend.
The study, which included nearly 30,000 women averaging 55 years of age, measured two types of fat in the bloodstream along with a certain type of protein with a blood test in 1993, then monitored the participants’ health for a 30-year period, the researchers said.
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“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),” lead study author Dr. Paul Ridker, director of the Center for Cardiovascular Disease Prevention at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, told Fox News Digital.
The study, which included nearly 30,000 women averaging 55 years of age, measured two types of fat in the bloodstream along with a certain type of protein. (iStock)
“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,” he said.
C-reactive protein (CRP) is a protein made by the liver that rises when inflammation occurs in the body, according to Mayo Clinic.
High levels of the protein indicate an elevated risk of heart disease.
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LDL cholesterol — also known as the “bad” cholesterol — can build up in the arteries and raise the chances of heart attack or stroke, Mayo Clinic noted.
Lipoprotein(a), or Lp(a), is a type of LDL cholesterol that can also cause plaque buildup in the arteries.
“This is a large, convincing study that puts together three predictive blood tests that haven’t been looked at in this way before.”
Women with the highest levels of LDL cholesterol were found to have a 36% increased associated risk for heart disease compared to those with the lowest levels, the researchers found.
Those with the highest levels of Lp(a) had a 33% greater risk.
The highest levels of CRP put women at a 70% increased associated risk.
LDL cholesterol, also known as the “bad” cholesterol, can build up in the arteries and raise the chances of heart attack or stroke. (iStock)
Women who had high levels of all three measures were 1½ times more likely to experience a stroke and more than three times as likely to have coronary heart disease, the researchers found.
While most doctors measure cholesterol, very few measure hsCRP and Lp(a), Ridker noted.
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“It is a truism of medicine that doctors will not treat what they do not measure.”
The fact that a single combination blood test predicted risk 30 years later is “astonishing,” the researcher said.
“It is a truism of medicine that doctors will not treat what they do not measure.”
“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,” he added.
Dr. Marc Siegel, senior medical analyst for Fox News and clinical professor of medicine at NYU Langone Medical Center, was not involved in the study, but said it is a “big step forward” in using a combination of blood tests to determine a woman’s cardiac risk.
“This is a large, convincing study that puts together three predictive blood tests that haven’t been looked at in this way before,” Siegel told Fox News Digital.
Women who had high levels of all three measures were 1½ times more likely to experience a stroke and more than three times more likely to have coronary heart disease. (iStock)
“Since inflammation can cause heart attacks, it is confirmatory that an elevated inflammation marker (CRP) conveys a 70% increased risk for heart disease,” he went on.
“LDL and Lp(a) have both previously shown an increased risk of heart disease.”
Siegel predicts that in the future, blood markers like these will be used in combination with artificial intelligence to determine the risk of heart disease and stroke.
Based on these findings, Ridker recommends that patients ask their physicians to specifically measure hsCRP and Lp(a).
“The time has come for our guidelines to change.”
Some patients will benefit from drug therapies to reduce inflammation and lower cholesterol levels, the researcher said. (iStock)
In Ridker’s experience, women tend to be less concerned about heart disease than men.
“Unfortunately, our traditional screening guidelines rarely identify at-risk women until they are in their late 60s or 70s,” he said.
“Yet prevention must start in our 30s and 40s for it to be most effective.”
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While prevention efforts should initially focus on a heart-healthy diet, regular exercise, smoking cessation and stress management, some patients will benefit from drug therapies to reduce inflammation and lower cholesterol levels, according to Ridker.
Based on these findings, the researchers recommend that patients ask their physicians to specifically measure hsCRP and Lp(a). (iStock)
The main limitation of the study is that the women who participated were health professionals, the researchers acknowledged.
“Yet in other settings, we know this is also true for men — and, if anything, an even greater concern for minority individuals,” Ridker said.
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The research was funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI), and the National Cancer Institute (NCI).
Novo Nordisk to slash Wegovy, Ozempic list prices
Board certified rheumatologist Dr. Mahsa Tehrani discusses Novo Nordisk’s decision to dramatically cut the U.S. list prices for its popular diabetes and weight-loss drugs Ozempic and Wegovy on ‘America Reports.’
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Millions of Medicare beneficiaries struggling with obesity could soon see the cost of weight-loss drugs plummet, as a new federal pilot program launching July 1 expands access to GLP-1 medications like Wegovy and Zepbound for eligible seniors.
Through a new trial called Medicare GLP-1 Bridge, the federal government is now offering a selection of the brand-name medications to certain Medicare and Medicare Advantage beneficiaries for $50 a month, The Associated Press reported.
The covered medications include drugmaker Eli Lilly’s Foundayo tablets and Zepbound KwikPens and Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy injections and tablets, all of which have been FDA-approved for weight loss, according to the report.
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The temporary program is set to run until the end of 2027.
This is the first time GLP-1s (glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists) will be covered by insurance when used solely for weight loss.
A new federal pilot program launching July 1 expands access to GLP-1 medications like Wegovy and Zepbound for eligible seniors. (iStock)
Prior to this new Medicare pilot, seniors who wanted to access GLP-1s for obesity alone paid about $1,350-$1,650 per month for Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy (semaglutide) and about $1,086 monthly for Lilly’s Zepbound (tirzepatide). However, both manufacturers offered some cash-pay options that significantly reduced those prices for eligible patients.
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There are some parameters surrounding the coverage — older adults must have had a body mass index (BMI) of 35 or higher when they started GLP-1 therapy, or a BMI of 27 or higher alongside another health condition, such as a past heart attack or stroke or prediabetes.
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Those who already have insurance coverage for other diseases, such as diabetes and sleep apnea, are not eligible for the program.
Through a new trial called Medicare GLP-1 Bridge, the federal government is now offering a selection of the brand-name medications to certain Medicare and Medicare Advantage beneficiaries for $50 a month. (iStock)
There are more than 70 million Americans currently enrolled in Medicare, 10 million of whom are overweight or obese, according to Juliette Cubanski, vice president and director of the program on Medicare policy at the healthcare research nonprofit KFF.
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“For many older Americans living with obesity, this is a moment they and their families have been waiting for,” Jamey Millar, Novo Nordisk’s executive vice president of U.S. operations, said in a press release.
“The Medicare GLP-1 Bridge program offers a new, affordable path to an FDA-approved treatment that was previously not covered.”
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Dr. Mehmet Oz, administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, said he hopes the program can help his agency collect data to potentially work toward longer-term coverage, while providing immediate relief to cash-strapped older Americans, AP reported.
“The sheer cost of these medications is a huge barrier to access,” he said in a call with reporters. “That ends today.”
Prior to this new Medicare pilot, seniors who wanted to access GLP-1s for obesity alone paid about $1,350-$1,650 per month for Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy (semaglutide) and about $1,086 monthly for Lilly’s Zepbound (tirzepatide). (iStock)
Oz told reporters that CMS plans to “carefully track participation and outcomes” to see whether an extension of the Bridge program or another solution is the best way to move forward. He told AP a federal law permanently allowing the coverage is “not essential right now” but something “for Congress to debate amongst themselves.”
“We can’t decide what’s going to happen long term with Bridge until we see some of the data,” he said, adding that there are ongoing talks with drug companies to lower costs.
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One potential concern is that older patients tend to have more adverse effects to medication in general , according to Dr. Micah Eimer, a clinical assistant professor of cardiology at the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine.
“Specifically, in our research, older patients on blood pressure medications were more likely to experience hypotensive side effects, such as fainting and dizziness, after starting a GLP-1,” he said in a statement.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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Federal health officials are attempting to track down the source of a microscopic parasite that triggers prolonged gastrointestinal illness, as domestic cases begin to climb for the summer season.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention had confirmed 145 cases of cyclosporiasis across 17 states as of mid-June 2026, all linked to infections acquired in the U.S.
The culprit is Cyclospora, a microscopic parasite known to cause cyclosporiasis.
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The hallmark symptom of the infection is watery, often “explosive” diarrhea that can last for weeks or even months if left untreated, the CDC says.
There is currently no evidence of a single, multistate Cyclospora outbreak linking all cases. (AP Photo/Jeff Amy, File)
Other symptoms include severe abdominal cramping, bloating, nausea, fatigue and significant weight loss.
The official outbreak season for the parasite runs from May 1 through Aug. 31, a window where warmer temperatures historically coincide with a spike in infections, according to the CDC.
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Cases have cropped up in states ranging from Texas to Alaska. New York has been hit the hardest so far, reporting between 31 and 80 cases, followed by Texas and Illinois, which have each reported between 11 and 30 cases.
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While the infection can sometimes clear up on its own, it frequently requires antibiotics. Out of the 145 confirmed cases, 20 patients have required hospitalization, per the CDC.
While the infection can sometimes clear up on its own, it frequently requires antibiotics. (iStock)
No deaths have yet been reported. Patients range from 5 to 86 years old, though the median age is 42, and women make up 61% of the reported cases, data shows.
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The CDC, alongside the Food and Drug Administration and state health officials, is actively investigating several multi-state clusters, but they have yet to find a cause behind the spread.
Officials urge patients with symptoms to seek help from a medical professional. (iStock)
“There is currently no evidence of a single, multistate Cyclospora outbreak linking all cases,” the CDC noted in its surveillance report.
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The CDC advises anyone experiencing symptoms of cyclosporiasis to contact a healthcare provider for testing and treatment.
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