March 2025

Discoveries, trends, and discussions in medical diagnostics

Welcome to the March issue of Diagnostics Dialogue, where you can get up to speed on the most important discoveries, trends, and discussions in medical diagnostics. Continue reading to learn more.

March is National Kidney Month

March is National Kidney Month

March is National Kidney Month

March is National Kidney Month

Kidney disease affects millions of people


March serves as a rallying point to intensify efforts to raise awareness about chronic kidney disease (CKD).

  • CKD affects more than 1 in 7 US adults—an estimated 35.5 million Americans1
  • As many as 9 in 10 adults who have CKD are not aware they have the disease1

Identifying and managing patients who have early stages of CKD may slow or prevent the progression to end-stage kidney disease and reduce cardiovascular complications.2

Updated guidelines offer a more comprehensive approach to detecting and managing CKD at earlier stages—recommending both the traditional serum creatinine (eGFR) blood test and the urine albumin-to-creatinine ratio (uACR) test to assess both kidney function and damage.3

Guideline-based CKD testing can enable earlier diagnosis

Quest Diagnostics offers complete testing solutions and expert guidance to help diagnose CKD, manage progression, establish follow-ups, and initiate nephrology referrals.

With these combined insights, you can get a complete picture of your patient’s kidney health.

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Better outcomes

Better outcomes

Identify risk of interrelated cardiometabolic diseases with 1 test code

Patient risk continues to climb for a growing number of cardiometabolic diseases.4 Yet many patients are unaware of their own risk, including millions who have prediabetes.5
Among US adults:

of US adults have metabolic syndrome6

adults have prediabetes

more than 8 in 10 don’t know they have it5

adults have progressed to type 2 diabetes5
There are shared cardiometabolic risk factors contributing to related conditions, such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes and prediabetes, CKD, liver disease, and common endocrine disorders.7

The Metabolic Risk Panel from Quest can help simplify cardiometabolic risk assessment and provide a clear path for earlier risk identification.

Cancer care starts in primary care

You are the first line of defense
As a primary care provider, you have a critical role in the early detection of cancer. Patients may present with specific concerns or vague, nonspecific symptoms without suspecting an underlying malignancy. Your ability to recognize these early signs and take appropriate action can significantly impact their health and outcomes.

Recognize the early signs of multiple myeloma

Did you know that the most common symptoms of multiple myeloma—the second most common blood cancer in the US—are vague, so many doctors dismiss them or attribute them to conditions found in aging populations?

March is Multiple Myeloma Awareness Month, and it’s a good time to revisit common multiple myeloma symptoms, including lower back pain, bone pain, fatigue, bruising, neuropathy, and frequent infections.8
When tested with the SPEP test alone, 1 in 8 patients with multiple myeloma might be missed.9 
If a patient presents with symptoms suggestive of multiple myeloma, consider ordering guideline-recommended testing10 including serum protein electrophoresis (SPEP), serum immunofixation (SIFE), and the serum FLC assay in one combined order. 

To aid in diagnosing multiple myeloma and facilitating timely referral to hematology/oncology, Quest offers guideline-recommended testing in one convenient panel: Myeloma Detection Panel, Basic

You’re the first line of defense for your patients with multiple myeloma. Learn how to detect and diagnose multiple myeloma as early as possible.

 Learn more

Better experiences

Better experiences

Watch the webinar: Expediting diagnoses of autoimmune diseases

March is also Autoimmune Awareness Month. With over 100 known autoimmune diseases,11 and symptoms that can be complex, getting an accurate diagnosis quickly can be challenging.
4X
On average, patients with autoimmune disease see 4 different doctors over a 4-year period before an accurate diagnosis is made.12
During a recent webinar, Dr Ann Salm, Director, MSL Lead, Infectious Diseases, Quest Diagnostics, addressed the need for earlier diagnoses and discussed the advantages of testing for multiple autoimmune diseases at the same time. Watch the webinar

Quest offers comprehensive autoimmune panels that incorporate reflex testing to expedite diagnostic assessment without the need for additional visits and follow-up orders, helping to contain costs and speed time to diagnosis.
ANAlyzeR™ ANA, IFA with Reflex Titer/Pattern, Systemic Autoimmune Panel 1 >
ANA, IFA, Cascade and Rheumatoid Arthritis Panel 2, with Reflexes >
Plus, our comprehensive autoimmune screening interpretation guide helps you more clearly understand results and provide a more qualified referral to rheumatology with a clear picture of your patient's condition.
Watch the webinar

Removing traditional barriers to testing 

Removing traditional barriers to testing 

Removing traditional barriers to testing 

Improve the diagnosis rate for endocrine conditions in primary care

Research shows that endocrinologist wait times are nearing 3-6 months, with a shortage of 2,700+ endocrinologists.13,14

You play an important role in closing gaps in the diagnosis rate for thyroid conditions, PCOS, and hypogonadism and identifying those at risk for cardiometabolic comorbidities.
20M Americans are affected by a thyroid disorder, and up to 60% are unaware of their condition(15)
5%-18% of women are affected by PCOS, with health impacts across their lifespan(16-18)
~35% of men over age 45 have hypogonadism(19)
With 50 years of expertise in endocrine care, Quest is dedicated to supporting you with step-by-step, guideline-based testing algorithms for common endocrine disorders.
Reduce risk by testing your patients early to get them on a faster path to diagnosis, treatment, and management of their condition. Learn about our comprehensive offering.

Achieving the Quadruple Aim in your practice

Our purpose is to support you and your patients with leading services, patient experiences, and innovative testing that can help you provide clarity to the constant changes and challenges we’re seeing in healthcare today.

About Diagnostics Dialogue

In our conversations with providers across the country, we hear that you are facing many different constraints that make delivering care challenging. We’re here to help you navigate the uncertainty and deliver better health. With a broad test menu spanning 3,500+ tests and consultations from our medical staff of over 700 MDs and PhDs, we empower healthcare providers to create healthier communities, one patient at a time.
References
  1. National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK). Kidney disease statistics for the United States. Reviewed May 2023. Accessed May 28, 2024. https://www.niddk.nih.gov/health-information/health-statistics/kidney-disease
  2. Obrador G, Tonelli M. Early detection of chronic kidney disease. February 9, 2024. Accessed February 2, 2024. https://www.uptodate.com/contents/early-detection-of-chronic-kidney-disease
  3. Kidney disease: Improving global outcomes (KDIGO) CKD work group. KDIGO 2024 clinical practice guideline for the evaluation and management of chronic kidney disease. Kidney Int. 2024;105 (Suppl 4S): S117-S314. doi:10.1016/j.kint.2023.10.1018
  4. Singh A, Bruemmer D. Cardiometabolic risk: Shifting the paradigm toward comprehensive assessment. JACC Adv. 2024:3(4):100867. doi:10.1016/j.jacadv.2024.100867
  5. CDC. A report card: Diabetes in the United States infographic. Updated May 15, 2024. Accessed December 9, 2024. https://www.cdc.gov/diabetes/communication-resources/diabetes-statistics.html
  6. Liang X, Or B, Tsoi MF, et al. Prevalence of metabolic syndrome in the United States National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2011-18. Postgrad Med J. 2023;99(1175):985-992. doi:0.1093/postmj/qgad008
  7. Raghupathi W, Raghupathi V. An empirical study of chronic diseases in the United States: a visual analytics approach. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2018;15(3):431. doi:10.3390/ijerph15030431
  8. Mikhael J, Bhutani M, Cole C, et al. Multiple myeloma for the primary care provider: A practical review to promote earlier diagnosis among diverse populations.  Am J Med. 2023;136(1):33-41. doi:10.1016/j.amjmed.2022.08.030
  9. Katzmann JA, Kyle RA, Benson J, et al. Screening panels for detection of monoclonal gammopathies. Clin Chem. 2009;55(8):1517-1522. doi:10.1373/clinchem.2009.12666È
  10. Rajkumar SV, Dimopoulos MA, Palumbo A, et al. International myeloma working group updated criteria for the diagnosis of multiple myeloma. Lancet Oncol. 2014;15(12):e538-e548. doi:10.1016/S1470-2045(14)70442-5
  11. Autoimmune Association. Autoimmune disease list. Accessed February 3, 2024. https://autoimmune.org/disease-information/
  12. Autoimmune Association. Tips for getting a diagnosis of an autoimmune disease. Accessed May 2, 2024. https://autoimmune.org/resource-center/diagnosis-tips
  13. Vigersky RA, Fish L, Hogan P, et al. The clinical endocrinology workforce: current status and future projections of supply and demand. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2014;99(9):3112-3121. doi:10.1210/jc.2014-2257
  14. AACE Learning Center. Accessed August 3, 2023. https://learn.aace.com/Listing/SCOPE-Endocrinology-for-Primary-Care-5815
  15. American Thyroid Association. General information/press room. Accessed May 18, 2023. https://www.thyroid.org/media-main/press-room/
  16. Joham AE, Norman RJ, Stener-Victorin E, et al. Polycystic ovary syndrome. Lancet Diabetes Endocrinol. 2022;10(9):668-680. doi:10.1016/S2213-8587(22)00163-2 
  17. Escobar-Morreale HF. Polycystic ovary syndrome: definition, aetiology, diagnosis and treatment. Nat Rev Endocrinol. 2018;14(5):270-284. doi:10.1038/nrendo.2018.24
  18. Azziz R. Polycystic ovary syndrome. Obstet Gynecol. 2018;132(2):321-336. doi:10.1097/AOG.0000000000002698
  19. Endocrine Society. Hypogonadism in men. January 24, 2022. Accessed February 8, 2024. https://www.endocrine.org/patient-engagement/endocrine-library/hypogonadism
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