Millions in west don't know they have aggressive fatty liver disease, study says

Summary

More than 15 million people in the US, UK, Germany and France do not know they have the most aggressive form of fatty liver disease, according to research.Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) – the formal name for non-alcoholic fatty liver disease – occurs in people who drink no or minimal amounts of alcohol whose liver contains more than 5% fat.About two-thirds of patients with type 2 diabetes are thought to have the condition, which is also associated with obesity, heart and circulatory disease.Approximately 5% of adults globally have the most aggressive form of MASLD. Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH) causes fibrosis (scarring) and can lead to cirrhosis and is linked to greater risk of cardiovascular disease, chronic kidney disease and liver cancer.But the vast majority of people do not know they have the condition. An international group of researchers examined prevalence and diagnosis of aggressive fatty liver disease in the US, UK, Germany and France.The researchers found that just under 3% of people in the UK, France and Germany, and 4% of those in the US have MASH, but diagnosis rates were below 18%. That means about 20 million people in the US, UK, Germany and France are living with MASH but only 2.5 million people have a diagnosis, leaving more than three-quarters – about 16.7 million people – unaware they have the condition.The report, published in the Lancet Regional Health Europe and presented at the meeting of the global thinktank on steatotic liver disease in Barcelona, Spain, on Thursday, calls for a doubling in diagnosis rates from 2022 levels. Traditionally, MASH was diagnosed through biopsy, but now non-invasive methods such as blood tests, ultrasound and MRI scans can be used. As a result, everyone with type 2 diabetes; obesity combined with one or more other risk factors; and those with persistently high liver enzymes should be screened for MASH, the researchers conclude.Dr Jeffrey Lazarus, the l...