Researchers at Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital (RBWH) are searching for early biological warning signs that could identify people with obesity who are most at risk of developing heart or kidney failure. 

Using advanced blood and urine analysis, the team hopes to identify subtle changes that appear long before symptoms develop. These discoveries could pave the way for simple, non-invasive tests that allow clinicians to identify people at greatest risk earlier, when treatment and lifestyle changes have the best chance of preventing serious disease. 

The project will also work with patients to better understand what matters most to them, helping shape more coordinated, patient-centred care for people living with these interconnected conditions. 

Heart disease, kidney disease and obesity often occur together and can accelerate each other’s progression. But by the time they’re diagnosed, significant and often irreversible damage has already occurred. While treatments exist to slow disease progression, clinicians currently have no reliable way to identify which people are most likely to develop these serious complications before they become unwell. 

This project aims to change that. 

Researchers will analyse blood and urine samples using cutting-edge technology capable of detecting hundreds of proteins at once, searching for biological signals that indicate a person's future risk of heart or kidney failure. 

The long-term goal is to develop simple, non-invasive tests that help clinicians intervene earlier - shifting care from treating established disease to, wherever possible, preventing it.