Treating amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is typically a matter of addressing the symptoms. ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig’s Disease, is a complex and widely variant disease that has proven to be extremely difficult to develop treatments for. However, new research has yielded a blood test that could help track the potential progression of the disease early on.

This is big news for ALS research, as it would give scientists an objective way to measure the disease’s progression, aiding greatly in the experimental process for developing treatments.

ALS is a degenerative disease that causes damage to nerve cells in charge of muscle control. This results in the breakdown of muscles until even breathing and swallowing is impossible. Those diagnosed with ALS live an average of one to five years. Only five percent live with the disease for 20 years or more.

The vast differences between disease progression in each individual patient has presented difficulties in crucial areas of treatment development. As of now, there are two measures used in testing to determine if a treatment is useful or not — survival and the ALS functional scale. Both measures are limited in their validity, meaning they are inconsistent in the information the produce.

Testing for specific compounds in the blood may be a more consistent way to measure the disease and the potential progression it will take. Two proteins, albumin and creatinine, have been shown to accurately indicate disease progression. The levels of which they are present in the blood at the time of diagnosis can help predict how quickly the disease will progress. Low albumin levels were associated with greater rates of inflammation while lower creatinine levels were connected to increased loss of muscle mass.

Researchers believe that measuring these levels at various points in a trial could make developing treatments aimed at slowing the progression of ALS a much more attainable goal.