Prime Highlight
- The National Institute for Health and Care Research has funded the UK’s largest-ever liver disease study to enable earlier diagnosis and prevent severe illness and hospital admissions.
- Researchers aim to shift liver care into primary settings, helping patients make early lifestyle changes before irreversible damage occurs.
Key Facts
- The £3.4 million DIALS trial will screen around 42,000 people across the UK through GP-led primary care services.
- Led by Professor Emmanouil Tsochatzis, the study will use three non-invasive liver scans and could inform future national screening policy.
Background
The National Institute for Health and Care Research has funded a major new study aimed at detecting liver disease earlier and preventing thousands of people from needing hospital care. The DIALS trial has received £3.4m in funding and will screen around 42,000 people across the UK through primary care services.
The study, known as the Diagnosis of Liver Disease in Primary Care trial, is the largest liver research project in the history of the NHS. It is led by Professor Emmanouil Tsochatzis, a consultant hepatologist at the Royal Free Hospital and professor at University College London. Dr Ian Rowe from the University of Leeds is co-leading the trial, alongside a wide team of specialists from across the country.
The trial focuses on diagnosing liver disease at an earlier stage, when treatment and lifestyle changes can still prevent serious damage. Currently, around 70% of patients admitted to the hospital with advanced liver disease have never been diagnosed before. About 25% of them die within two months of admission, leaving little chance for prevention.
Alcohol still causes most cases of liver cirrhosis, and obesity and Type 2 diabetes also raise the risk. Early diagnosis helps patients cut alcohol, improve diet, and access medication that may reverse fatty liver disease.
People at higher risk will be invited by their GPs to take part in the study. Doctors will use three different non-invasive liver scans to find the most effective way to detect disease early. Patients showing signs of cirrhosis will be referred to hospital specialists for further care.
NIHR said the study supports NHS plans to shift care from hospitals into the community. Researchers hope the findings will shape future national screening policy and reduce the £4.9bn annual cost of preventable liver disease.
