University of Cambridge

3

Samuel Lambert

OFHS240191

We aim to find common risk factors for people who have a condition related to their heart, blood sugar control, kidneys or liver with additional conditions. Finding common risk factors could be the starting point for preventing these diseases from occurring. Genetic data may also be useful to help scientists and doctors come up with new treatments. Heart and metabolic diseases (including heart attack, stroke, high blood pressure, diabetes, and kidney disease) are leading causes of death in the UK and worldwide. Many people have more than one of these diseases at the same time, and others. We call this multiple long-term conditions or MLTC for short. Having MLTC is difficult for patients because it increases health care and medication usage, limiting quality of life and lifespan. MLTC is also difficult for the healthcare system, as it is often designed to treat one disease at a time. Having MLTCs is unlikely to happen by chance. We know that blood pressure, cholesterol, and body weight play a big role in these diseases. But that doesn’t explain it all. Our genes could also affect who gets these diseases and when. Access to data from Our Future Health will help us understand how heart and metabolic diseases develop; alone or as MLTCs. We will look for new risk factors in the data, both genetic and those due to lifestyle or other factors. We will also develop methods to predict who might develop these conditions. We hope these findings may help prevent these diseases, or open ideas for new treatment options.

Heart and metabolic diseases are leading causes of death in the UK and worldwide. Many people also live with multiple long-term health conditions, creating added challenges and risks for patients. These conditions occurring together (called MLTCs for short), also increase healthcare costs. Preventing MLTCs would improve patients’ quality of life and reduce costs. We know that factors like high blood pressure, cholesterol, and genetics increase risk of heart and metabolic diseases. However, our current tools do not predict all cases of disease. This means some people at risk are missed. Our study aims to find new predictors that may allow us to spot and prevent these diseases earlier. Our findings could help doctors better identify people who might benefit from early care. They may also point to new ways to prevent or treat disease, such as with medicines. In the long term, this research could improve health, reduce deaths, and ease the strain on the NHS.

Public Health Research

06/03/2025

05/03/2025

TRE