Carriers of one harmful ABCC6 variant at no higher cardiovascular risk
In 315,858 adults followed for a median of 13.7 years, carriers had a hazard ratio of 0.95 for first cardiovascular events compared with noncarriers.
Limit: UCC-SMART relied on biannual questionnaires, which could miss or misclassify cardiovascular events
Edited by Boris Djordjevic · AgingResearch.News
This observational study included 315,858 UK Biobank participants of White British European ancestry, averaging 57 years old, with no cardiovascular disease history; 45% were men. Among them, 4,963 carried one harmful or likely harmful variant of ABCC6, a gene linked to a rare inherited disease. Over a median of 13.7 years, 17,627 first cardiovascular events occurred, including strokes, heart attacks and cardiovascular deaths. Carriers did not have higher risk than noncarriers. Their hazard ratio, a measure comparing event rates over time, was 0.95; the range of likely values included no difference.
Researchers also examined 4,402 people of European ancestry with prior cardiovascular disease in the high-risk UCC-SMART prospective cohort. Among them, 57 carried ABCC6 variants. For subsequent cardiovascular events, carriers had a hazard ratio of 0.94 compared with noncarriers. The range of likely values also included no difference.
Why it matters
Genetic contributions to cardiovascular disease bear on understanding disease risk in later life. The authors found no evidence to support current guidelines advising cardiovascular risk-factor screening for carriers of a single disease-causing ABCC6 variant.
Caveats
The study was observational and included only people of European ancestry, so the findings may not apply to other populations. The report was a conference abstract, and outcomes in UCC-SMART were identified through biannual questionnaires.
The paper
University Medical Center Utrecht
ESC Congress 2026 Abstract, Oct 26, 2026
Presented at ESC Congress 2026
