Cell hope on liver disease

A CELL process in bile ducts could lead to a new treatment to stop liver disease and cancer.

Senescence occurs when aged cells no longer undergo natural division.

Research on mice found triggering it harms vital cells in bile ducts, causing liver failure, while blocking it reverses liver damage.

Professor Stuart Forbes of University of Edinburgh said it would help identify a “target for future therapies.” Liver disease kills 16,087 a year and rates have doubled since 1991.