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Study of inflammatory diseases may encourage lab tests for patients

Category: Organ Specific Testing

A research team in London has begun investigation of chronic inflammatory diseases, hoping to understand the biological processes which trigger and forecast the conditions' development.

The National Institute for Health Research has teamed up with King's College in London to develop a research program that examines the underlying causes of persistent inflammation experienced by sufferers of conditions like rheumatoid arthritis, psoriasis, ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease.

Professor Frank Nestle, director of Cutaneous Medicine and Immunotherapy at King's College commented, "We want to test the theory that there are common immunological pathways underlying many chronic inflammatory diseases and that these could serve as valuable biomarkers for diagnostic, prognostic and therapeutic purposes."

The presence of biomarkers allows doctors to administer laboratory screening to patients, including arthritis tests, cancer tests and vitamin D deficiency tests, which allow for early detection and accurate diagnosis of many medical conditions.

Researchers will use cutting-edge multiplex cytokine analysis equipment to examine the cells that are involved in the body's immune response in minute detail.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, between 2003 and 2005, 50 percent of U.S. adults over 65-years-old reported being diagnosed with arthritis, a common inflammatory disease.