Dr. Eric Topol — one of the most influential cardiologists and most cited researchers in medicine — recently published a detailed clinical review of Clonal Hematopoiesis of Indeterminate Potential (CHIP) in his widely read Ground Truths newsletter. His conclusion is striking: CHIP is not indeterminate at all. He argues it should be renamed "Clonal Hematopoiesis of Important Potential" and assessed routinely in older adults as part of a comprehensive cardiovascular risk evaluation.

The data is clear. CHIP carries a 1.8 Hazard Ratio for heart disease. This exceeds the 1.4 HR associated with traditional risk factors like smoking and hypertension. Despite the evidence, CHIP remains undervalued in routine clinical practice.

For his personal assessment, Dr Topol used the Lucence CardioHemeRISK™ test. His article notes a 500X sequencing depth, but precise detection of low-frequency signals requires more. Lucence utilizes 10,000X ultra-deep sequencing to capture driver mutations that shallow panels miss. High-resolution sensitivity is necessary to define a patient's risk profile accurately.

Preventive care should consider CHIP testing alongside Lp(a) and ApoB. This approach identifies high-risk individuals that traditional lipid panels alone may miss. At Lucence, our focus is now scaling this technology to improve accessibility for clinicians and patients.

Read the full analysis by Dr. Eric Topol on Substack: https://erictopol.substack.com/p/the-missing-chip