Liver disease is now the fifth
biggest killer in the UK — with the number of people dying from it
rising by 20 per cent over the past decade. However, there are often no
warning signs until it is far advanced, so many of us could have the
potentially fatal condition without even realising it.
Indeed,
when the British Liver Trust recently offered members of the public
on-the-spot screening, one in four people tested showed signs of early
scarring.
‘Most people
die of liver disease after just their first or second admission to
hospital for it, as they have not realised they were suffering with it —
and their condition will be so far advanced. By the time they are seen,
it is too late,’ says Dr Martin Prince, consultant hepatologist at the
Manchester Royal Infirmary.
These people took a test using FibroScan, a
device that measures the stiffness of the liver. The technique is
similar to ultrasound
