Biomarkers for harmful alcohol use should be reliable, standardised, and traceable
Only the CDT reference method has been approved by JCTLM and IFCC
Harmful alcohol consumption remains a major public health issue and is increasingly assessed using laboratory biomarkers in both clinical and forensic settings. Because test results may influence medical decisions, fitness-to-drive assessments, occupational evaluations in safety-sensitive professions, and legal outcomes, biomarkers used to assess alcohol consumption should provide reliable, accurate, and internationally comparable results.
This article reviews the current landscape of alcohol biomarkers and highlights the importance of analytical standardization and traceability. Particular emphasis is placed on carbohydrate-deficient transferrin (CDT), a biomarker specifically associated with chronic excessive alcohol consumption. Extensive work by the IFCC Working Group on CDT Standardization led to the development of an IFCC-recognized reference measurement procedure (RMP) and its subsequent recognition by the Joint Committee for Traceability in Laboratory Medicine (JCTLM).
As a result, CDT-IFCC is currently the only alcohol biomarker supported by an internationally recognized framework for standardization and traceability, enabling consistent, comparable, and clinically reliable results.
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