neophyte32
Established Member (Voting Rights)
Is this false advertising? Or not ?
Development and validation of blood-based diagnostic biomarkers for [ME/CFS] using EpiSwitch®… 2025, Hunter et al. (Oxford Biodynamics)
- Thread starter Sly Saint
- Start date
Nature News actually reported on this development. I don't think I am allowed to share the article because it requires a subscription (which I have). I can share this one quote that might be the most important takeaway.Why ME/CFS Biomarker Headlines Keep Failing to Deliver
Every few years, headlines appear claiming that scientists have finally found a biomarker for myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS). Each time, the community feels a surge of hope: maybe this is it—the long-awaited diagnostic test that will legitimize the disease and speed up treatment research.
And yet, decades later, we still don’t have a clinically validated biomarker. The latest announcement about the EpiSwitch blood test is just the newest chapter in this long story of excitement and disappointment.
Why a Biomarker for ME/CFS Matters
A biomarker—a measurable biological signal that identifies a disease—could change everything for ME/CFS. It could shorten the years-long diagnostic delays, help distinguish ME/CFS from overlapping illnesses, and guide treatment development (Jason et al., 2023).
But identifying one has proven incredibly difficult. ME/CFS is a heterogeneous condition. No two patients are the same, and the biological pathways involved—immune, metabolic, vascular, and neurological—are deeply interconnected (Proal & VanElzakker, 2025).
The Pattern: Discovery, Hype, and Disappointment
The ME/CFS field has followed a predictable pattern for years:
This cycle has played out with cytokine panels (Montoya et al., 2017), mitochondrial enzyme assays (Armstrong et al., 2015), metabolomic signatures (Naviaux et al., 2016), and red blood cell deformability (Saha et al., 2019). Each produced intriguing findings, but none proved specific or stable enough to serve as a diagnostic test.
- A small study identifies a biological difference between patients and healthy controls.
- The media declares it a “breakthrough blood test.”
- The findings fail to replicate in larger, more diverse groups.
- The discovery fades—until the next big claim.
ME/CFS Biomarkers: Why Every New Blood Test Isn’t the Breakthrough It Seems — Post-Viral Nutrition
Every few years, new headlines promise a biomarker for ME/CFS. Learn why most fail, what’s behind the EpiSwitch test, and why real progress will take a cluster of biomarkers.www.postviralnutrition.com
“I think it’s really cool they brought this method to the field,” says Katie Glass, a molecular biologist who studies ME/CFS at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York. “As far as it being a biomarker, my enthusiasm would be pretty tempered because the cohort is very small and they looked at only very severe patients.”
The tools available to researchers keep improving.
First proposed blood test for chronic fatigue syndrome: what scientists think
A blood test has achieved 96% accuracy in diagnosing the condition in a small study of individuals. What does the test detect, and is it a biomarker of the condition?
www.nature.com
Utsikt
Senior Member (Voting Rights)
Don’t take this a legal advice because I don’t have a legal background, but I think fair use generally allows for sharing a fairly large chunk of the article for non-commercial comment or criticism.Nature News actually reported on this development. I don't think I am allowed to share the article because it requires a subscription (which I have). I can share this one quote that might be the most important takeaway.
“I think it’s really cool they brought this method to the field,” says Katie Glass, a molecular biologist who studies ME/CFS at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York. “As far as it being a biomarker, my enthusiasm would be pretty tempered because the cohort is very small and they looked at only very severe patients.”
The tools available to researchers keep improving.
First proposed blood test for chronic fatigue syndrome: what scientists think
A blood test has achieved 96% accuracy in diagnosing the condition in a small study of individuals. What does the test detect, and is it a biomarker of the condition?
So your quote is probably well within what’s allowed.
Sly Saint
Senior Member (Voting Rights)
Article in Womens health magazine:
www.womenshealthmag.com
Scientists just developed a blood test that can diagnose chronic fatigue and long Covid
Scientists just developed a blood test that can diagnose chronic fatigue and long Covid
It could lay the groundwork for faster diagnoses and, potentially, additional treatments
www.womenshealthmag.com
John Mac
Senior Member (Voting Rights)
Response to the study
First, the article repeatedly asserts that “immune dysregulation” is a hallmark of ME/CFS, citing elevated pro-inflammatory cytokines and natural killer (NK) cell dysfunction. However, whereas the authors cite updated papers with a presumptive relationship with the issue, a critical omission here is the lack of citation of early foundational immunological studies in ME/CFS [2]. Notably absent is the 1994 work by Tirelli et al. in the Scandinavian Journal of Immunology, which documented, for the first time, immunological abnormalities in CFS patients and could serve as an important historical anchor for claims of immune dysregulation [2]. This omission raises concerns about reporting bias and selective citation to frame the narrative around newer, possibly more aligned findings with the current study methodology [2, 3].
Wheat and chaff in Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) in clinics and laboratory
First, the article repeatedly asserts that “immune dysregulation” is a hallmark of ME/CFS, citing elevated pro-inflammatory cytokines and natural killer (NK) cell dysfunction. However, whereas the authors cite updated papers with a presumptive relationship with the issue, a critical omission here is the lack of citation of early foundational immunological studies in ME/CFS [2]. Notably absent is the 1994 work by Tirelli et al. in the Scandinavian Journal of Immunology, which documented, for the first time, immunological abnormalities in CFS patients and could serve as an important historical anchor for claims of immune dysregulation [2]. This omission raises concerns about reporting bias and selective citation to frame the narrative around newer, possibly more aligned findings with the current study methodology [2, 3].
This letter to the editor promotes oxygen-ozone therapy for ME/CFS in the absence of reliable evidence. The authors of the letter appear to have a strong commitment to this therapy, yet they declare they have no conflict of interest.
Jonathan Edwards
Senior Member (Voting Rights)
Maybe wheat, chaff and a few tares sown by the enemy? (Matthew 13:24)
The paragraph of interest:
Affiliation of one of the authors:
It looks like this organization has paid courses about oxygen-ozone therapy (auto-translated link). The program (archived link) says "SIOOT/ASOO member fee: €180,00 - Non-members: €230,00" (translated from Italian).
The above author appears to be a speaker at both of the courses listed on the website, while the author Salvatore Chirumbolo appears to be listed for one.
From the letter to the editor, with bolding added:
And for the only example of such a treatment that they give, the only references they used to support the treatment are from the same three authors as this letter.
It's interesting that the authors think the most notable issue in a paper about developing a diagnostic test is that they didn't discuss alternative treatments.
And for the only example of such a treatment that they give, the only references they used to support the treatment are from the same three authors as this letter.