New here. I’m Chris. Does anyone agree that LFT bloods should be readily available without going through your GP?
I’ve had problems in the past and want to take a peace of mind approach and monitor my liver when I choose to. You can’t see it, necessarily feel it and you only really find out when it’s gone too far and you start getting symptoms so I see no problem in periodically monitoring my livers condition as this also helps my mental wellbeing.
Is there no way of sorting an LFT yourself, even at my cost? Thanks and look forward to chatting.
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You asked if LFT blood tests should be available without going through your GP. For what it’s worth, I think blood tests in general should be available this way if people choose to pay. A couple of countries I lived in have very comprehensive blood tests for the equivalent of £20 which show liver function, cholesterol, uric acid, cancer markers and others I can’t remember. I can’t find anything so comprehensive in the UK.
Places like BUPA and Nuffield will do liver function blood tests. It will cost a bit. I had this done at my GP too for free, and the results came in two days. That seems the best option.
I notice there are now kits which come by post which include a container you bleed into and send the sample back. I wouldn’t trust this at all.
And from my experience, I used to drink way too much - we’re talking 70 units a week for over a decade, daily drinking with no respite. My LFT results were perfect, but I had a mild fatty liver. I’m not convinced this test is the be all and end all, and if you have concerns, I’d face them. Good luck,
Thank you for your reply. I totally agree. It’s not medication so you’re not taking anything. Theres no risk involved. There’s no reason why we shouldn’t have blood tests that are available to everyone with a fee. Ive has a mixture of NHS and private healthcare. With private, they will usually need a referral letter from your GP so that puts me back to square one unfortunately.
The risk Coco was referring to was in drawing the blood yourself. And question is what value would these tests have without a specialist to interpret them. Mine are drawn every six months, and results are graphed in my medical chart. It is interesting to see them over a two year period. I can see how they're trending but that's about it. If that's what you're looking for, then you might want to consider spending the money.
Yes that's a long wait, but its a non-urgent matter. The thing is Chris, the tests won't give you any better idea of your liver health than just making the sort of healthy lifestyle changes that are proven to affect the test results in the long run.
It's not as though you can take extra vitamins for high bilirubin or creatinine or improve your clotting time with a few push-ups. You can ignore the advice to quit drinking and avoid toxic chemical exposures but these are the most common causes of liver damage that will only show up once accumulative damage has already been done.
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I too have gone privately on various things and like you had to obtain a referral letter from my GP! I found the only advantage is time scale in some cases. I had to identical carpel tunnel operations, the first done within week due to the urgency costing 1800 pounds and the second within 3 months paid by the NHS. The private consultant did both operations sucessfully! My consultant could have charged me for the second op but recommended I go NHS for my left hand due to it not being so bad as the right hand. He also guaranteed carrying out the second op and wrote to my GP stating this.
My opinion on the LFT's is a big Yes! We should be able to have additional bloods at our cost if we feel things are not right with our body and we cannot get to see our GP for weeks. Does Lloyd's /Boots Chemist offer this service? If not then maybe it's something they could consider instead of the online postal blood test route!,
Trish
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Totally agree although it’s an opinion of divide. Some people seem to think that alcohol is the route of all evil. If you drink then you’re simply asking for trouble. I think this is a massive over reaction. Yes, if you’re an alcoholic then there is a huge risk that you’re going to be in bother but if you’ve sorted the issues you had and are more disciplined, then what on earth is wrong with having an occasional drink, keeping within recommended guidelines? We are only here for a visit unfortunately, and if some are T total then that’s their choice but if I want to have a sociable drink in the lovely weather, why shouldn’t I and the way I can monitor it is by having blood tests. If they are high, I stop, if they aren’t, drink responsibly. Isn’t the point of things like cancers, early diagnosis? Well isn’t monitoring the same? I don’t know. Open for debate this one...
Couldn’t agree more. If someone’s healthy and not dependent on alcohol, then drinking within the 14 unit a week guideline is fine. I’m healthy by luck, but I’d become dependent - and still am, it doesn’t go away - so quit.
I’ve had all the scans known to man. Fatty liver last year so changed things. I drink, but not like I used too. To live life is just as important as looking after your health.
Did you eliminate your fatty liver? Fatty liver is set to become the main cause of cirrhosis in coming decades, following the social backlash against excessive alcoholic drink and the cure for Hep C. Sugar and processed foods are the culprits in our diets, and low levels of inflammation contribute.
Yes, i had/have a mild fatty liver as diagnosed by a routine private ultrasound. I wasn’t surprised, but it was a big reminder that I’d been causing damage by drinking. There’s only one way a fatty liver will go with continued drinking, and it won’t get better. I’d really prefer not to have a fatty liver - it’s not a trivial matter - and having one is a very good reason indeed to consider cutting right back on drinking or even stopping altogether.
Right Coco. My question was directed at GT. And if I sound crabby, it's because I agree with you. You can't monitor your liver function in the same way you can your blood sugar. Although, come to think of it, maybe that would be valuable?
Dr. Google says serum glucose levels (blood sugars) are linked to fatty liver. Cheaper test, fast results. Do liver function tests even measure glucose levels?
Now this is a point that angers me in my journey. I was diagnosed with fatty liver a year ago. Gallstones was my problem though. I continued to get attacks. I abstained from alcohol for 2-3 months completely. Alcohol wasn’t the root cause of the issue. It was my diet. I changed my diet immediately and have continued eating healthy foods ever since. I mainly eat chicken, fish and veg. Carbs are wholemeal ie pasta, rice and couscous. Wholemeal bread too.
That was diagnosed under ultrasound. Ive had MRI and CT scans within the past year. The MRI proved that there was no blockages and the CT proved that my organs were a correct shape. The ultrasound I paid for myself as my insurance wouldn’t cover it and the NHS wait was 8 weeks at that time. The MRI and CT was done via my insurance. The last bloods I had was back in November where they were normal. The problem is, because everyone was focusing on my gallbladder and just wanted to yank it out, everyone has forgotten about my liver and the fact that it was fatty. Just because bloods are normal doesn’t mean the fatty aspect has disappeared. Touch wood I’ve had no major issues and not fallen poorly but I’m the only one that truly knows my body and the medical profession should respect that hence why I think something as simple as bloods should be easier to access. If you’ve something wrong with you, you go to the doc who will 99% of the time send you for a blood test. Well, if we know the part of the blood test we want to target ie the liver, why can’t we do it?
This won’t be helpful at all to you, GT17, but I have a full blood test as well as other tests when I’m abroad. The cost of the blood test really is peanuts.
Yes, the UK NHS is still very poor at prevention, and the way blood tests are done is another example. Out of curiosity, I checked Nuffield’s website, and they’re offering very basic blood tests for hundreds of pounds.
Contradicting my earlier post, but I can see why people opt for the home test kits, but it seems so wrong.
I again totally agree. My bloods at the Nuffield after my MRI were £180. Plus I had to wait 7 days for results!!! I found that horrendously expensive. If labs are doing home kits for £59 then there’s a rather large gap between costs. Either the Nuffield are ripping us off or the home kits are rubbish?? Blood is blood after all and there’s a test process. One can’t be better than the other if they offer a process?
Regardless of that, if I was to go back to the Nuffield, I’d still need a referral letter which means I have to get involved with my GP again.
You’d have to factor in the swanky Nuffield facilities with the free coffee, etc. I’m hesitant to mention this as it might end with a lot of fruitless searching, but if a blood test is £180 at Nuffield, is it worth looking overseas?
I’m also curious about GP referrals for private tests. Within reason, they can’t really say no, can they?
No in my opinion they shouldn’t stand in your way. If I was wanting drugs then that is completely understandable but a blood test....I’m not so sure but that’s the process. The process in my case brings on anxiety because I feel as though I bang my head against a wall in getting something A, I feel I’m entitled to and B, something that isn’t costing the NHS a penny. Red tape and poor systems is the achilles heel of the UK unfortunately in many sectors of business and life itself.
Ah ha. That depends at my Dr’s who picks up the phone. With my ultrasound, it took 4 days to get a letter and back and forth phone conversations with the receptionist, heightening stress because she wanted me to see the doctor and I was rebellious of that because this was ongoing at that time and I was on record with the connected issues. I did get a letter in the end but it was beyond trivial. It’s almost like the surgery get a kick back from treatment or referrals or something because the hoops were unnecessary in my opinion.
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Hi again GT17
I agree to a point!
I'm almost T Total as I cannot handle the stuff, 2 drinks and I useless plus I was married to an alcoholic for 2 decades and my dad like it to much too!
My new husband of 21 years also likes a drink now and then and especially more in the warmer weather! Unfortunately he thinks because his bloods are fine that his body is allowing him to drink more and more without any damage to his liver! He forgets other organs are being damaged which wont show up on a standard LTF blood test plus HE could kick in! Slurred speech, mood changes which sometimes only others can see and not the person drinking !
I personally dont think being able to pay for private blood tests should be a guarantee safe route to drink more in warm weather or not.
I have nothing against sensible drinking if that person's health is fully fine and as long as others are not affected! Unfortunately, my husband now has other medical conditions which are worse with binge drinking sessions! Lucky for me he's now aware of my concerns and has cut right down! 😁
Medichecks supply a huge range of home test kits including LFTs, (finger prick tests which you send off to their lab ) I and many others on ThyroidUK forum use them all the time, they are very reliable and you get a Drs report with the results.
Experience from the thousands who use them, we can compare both nhs and Medichecks results and allowing for slightly different ranges on some tests the results have been reliable. Blue Horizon is another home test lab which many people use but I haven't tried them.
Have a read of their website and decide if it's right for you, give them a call if you have any questions or concerns, they are very helpful. Good luck
Hi GT17, My husband is the one with livet disease not me. But a few years ago my parents saw a healthcheck on Groupon and paid for me to have one (I'd lost some weight and they thought I looked pale - I was fine though!).
I'm not sure if there are any Groupon offers on but this gives you a full health check and does include LFT. There might be similar companies around.
Thank you for that. I never thought of Groupon. I’ll take a look now.
Hi Chris,
Welcome to the forum.
The British Liver Trust would only advocate obtaining a liver function blood test via the GP service or NHS . This way the blood test can be assured to be performed under clinical conditions and reported appropriately in an NHS lab then sent to the GP/specialist for clinical consideration.
This process ensures that the doctors can assess the results and then order further investigations if necessary.
We cannot comment on the validity or accuracy of any home tests.
If people choose to buy these then it is often difficult to obtain medical interpretation as many GP’s will then request liver function tests again via the routine route to ensure validity.
Liver function tests are one part of a diagnostic process that often also includes assessment of medical history, symptoms, physical assessment, imaging tests and other medical tests.
We will be closing the thread now as it does mention where to purchase private tests and any such advertising is against community rules.
Very best wishes
Trust1
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