At-Home Cholesterol Screening Accessible Through New Program

September 30 marks LDL-C Awareness Day and brings both a conclusion to National Cholesterol Education Month as well as the launch of Cholesterol Connect. From the Family Heart Foundation, this novel and innovative combination of free at-home testing for blood lipid levels and live personalized care navigation support from the Family Heart Care Navigation Center hopes to increase awareness of the dangers of cardiovascular disease (CVD), the benefits of knowing your heart disease risk, and the risk factors that precede their development, and thereby lower dangerous disease risk factors for people.¹

Low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) is perhaps best known as “the bad cholesterol” because of the role it plays in plaque buildup at excessive levels²—lipids (or fats) attach to these proteins so they can move about within the body³—and the resultant higher risks of several severe CVD outcomes. These outcomes include coronary artery disease, cerebrovascular disease, peripheral artery disease, aortic aneurysm, stroke, and heart attack, and they can be fatal.^4,5

Cholesterol in and of itself is not bad; our bodies need these fats to function properly. However, in general, at levels above 130 mg/dL, an individual may be entering dangerous territory for adverse heart health outcomes.^2,5

At the same time, lipoprotein(a), or Lp(a), is increasingly implicated as a critical risk factor for atherosclerotic CVD.⁶ Whereas connections can often be made between high LDL-C levels and lifestyle choices, Lp(a) level is a genetically predetermined independent risk factor for heart disease.⁷

Heart disease consistently ranks as the leading cause of death in the US | Image Credit: © fontriel-stock.adobe.com

Recognizing and knowing the inherent dangers of excessive LDL-C and lipoprotein(a) levels and that levels of both often remain unmeasured in targeted populations, the test developed as part of Cholesterol Connect will measure not only levels of LDL-C and Lp(a), but also levels of total cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (or the good cholesterol), and triglycerides. According to a press release on the new program, just 1.1% of adults with high levels of Lp(a) have ever been tested, meaning millions more have not, and more than 40% of the 71 million Americans with elevated LDL-C do not know they have high levels of LDL-C.¹

“Making Lp(a) and LDL-cholesterol screening more easily accessible is vital to help people better understand their risk for heart attack and stroke,” said Paul Burton, MD, senior vice president and chief medical officer at Amgen, which is helping to sponsor Cholesterol Connect, in a statement. "Amgen's collaboration with the Family Heart Foundation aims to empower individuals with resources to help them make informed decisions about their heart health and address cardiovascular disease as a public health crisis.”¹

According to the CDC for 2022, heart disease was the number 1 reason behind all-cause mortality in the US , with upwards of 702,000 individuals having this as their cause of death, followed by cancer at just over 608,000 deaths and preventable injuries a distant third with 227,000-plus deaths.⁸ These top causes remained unchanged in 2023, although the numbers did see some changes⁹:

• Heart disease: 680,980 deaths, for an age-adjusted rate of 162.1 per 100,000 population
• Cancer: 613,352 deaths, for 143.6 per 100,000
• Accidents/unintentional injuries: 222,725 deaths, for 62.6 per 100,000

Anyone will be able to request the Cholesterol Connect test and be provided access to the care navigation option, regardless of insurance status. With between 80% and 90% of CVD-related deaths deemed preventable, increasing awareness of risk factors, and thereby the ability to increase prevention efforts, has never been more important.

To learn more and to request a test kit, anyone interested can visit www.cholesterolconnect.org.

References

1. Family Heart Foundation launches “Cholesterol Connect,” free screening and personalized support program to address the leading cause of death in America. News release. Family Heart Foundation. September 30, 2024. Accessed September 30, 2024.

2. LDL: the "bad" cholesterol. MedlinePlus. Accessed September 30, 2024. https://medlineplus.gov/ldlthebadcholesterol.html

3. Mayo Clinic Staff. High cholesterol. Mayo Clinic. January 11, 2023. Accessed September 30, 2024. https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/high-blood-cholesterol/symptoms-causes/syc-20350800

4. LDL cholesterol. Cleveland Clinic. Accessed September 30, 2024. https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/articles/24391-ldl-cholesterol

5. High cholesterol. Penn Medicine. Accessed September 30, 2024. https://www.pennmedicine.org/for-patients-and-visitors/patient-information/conditions-treated-a-to-z/high-cholesterol

6. Klein HE. Largest study of Lp(a), recurrent ASCVD highlights critical risks and need for screening. AJMC^®. September 24, 2024. Accessed September 30, 2024. https://www.ajmc.com/view/largest-study-of-lp-a-recurrent-ascvd-highlights-critical-risks-and-need-for-screening

7. Lipoprotein (a). American Heart Association. Accessed September 30, 2024. https://www.heart.org/en/health-topics/cholesterol/genetic-conditions/lipoprotein-a

8. Leading causes of death. CDC National Center for Health Statistics. Accessed September 30, 2024. https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/fastats/leading-causes-of-death.htm

9. Johnson SR. Top 10 causes of death in America. US News & World Report. August 13, 2024. Accessed September 30, 2024. https://www.usnews.com/news/healthiest-communities/slideshows/top-10-causes-of-death-in-america