Roche launches liver disease algorithm panel

Roche has introduced what it says is the first comprehensive panel of certified algorithms to help manage people living with chronic liver disease (CLD).

The Liver Disease Panel has been added to the Swiss company's navify open marketplace for clinical decision-making algorithms and other digital health technologies (DHTs), designed to assist healthcare systems in delivering faster and more tailored treatment for patients.

CLD is a massive health problem worldwide, with 1.5 billion people affected and many undiagnosed and at risk of avoidable progression to advanced-stage diseases like cirrhosis and liver cancer.

The reason for low diagnosis rates is primarily that early stages of CLD are asymptomatic, and Roche says its collection of biomarker-based diagnostics and advanced digital algorithms – for risk identification and disease assessment – can help to address the challenges in identifying patients.

Among the tools is the CE-marked LiverPRO algorithm, developed by Evido Health, which assesses the risk of liver fibrosis in adult patients without relying on invasive procedures like biopsies. It also draws on Roche's Elecsys diagnostics platform with the PRO-C3 test, launched last year, which can be used to assess liver fibrosis severity in patients showing signs of metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD), one of the most common causes of CLD in the developed world.

"Chronic liver disease impacts millions of lives around the world, and patients need effective care at every stage of their journey," said Matt Sause, chief executive of Roche Diagnostics.

"With the Liver Disease Panel, we are enabling clinicians to identify risk earlier, intervene sooner, and manage this disease more effectively, helping to improve liver care and support better patient health."

Since its launch in 2023, navify has grown to include more than 130 digital technologies for use by labs, hospitals and patients across a growing group of disease categories that also includes oncology, cardiology, hepatology, and respiratory and infectious diseases.

The marketplace underlines how pharma companies are extending the use of AI beyond drug discovery and development to include tools that can assist in the conduct of clinical trials and support personalised treatments for patients. It allows clinicians to order the medical algorithms they need from Roche, as well as other DHT providers.

Image by Mohamed Hassan from Pixabay