To begin with, the title implies that Lp(a) is a "new" discovery. The research on Lipoprotein(a) was well enough developed in 1992 that the Linus Pauling Institute had conducted studies, and Pauling had lectured for years on the danger. I would put the date of the discovery that Lp(a) is a "major" player in heart disease in the years 1988/1989. (The year the Wall Street Journal first reported on lipoprotein(a).)
Please do not let the medical establishment promote the fiction, through its friends in the press, that all this has "just been discovered." They need their feet held to the fire for ignoring this discovery for the past 7/8 years at the possible cost of up to 800 Billion dollars in unnecessary medical expenditures.
The story claims there is a 10% Lp(a) correlation to heart disease. The Framingham Heart Study recently reevaluated their findings looking for a correlation to Lp(a). They didn't find a 10% correlation -- they found Lp(a) to be a 10 TIMES better predictor of heart disease than ordinary LDL.
Point #3, The AP story implies Lp(a) can not be reliably measured and reports: "...because no standardized test is available, and even when the Lp(a) level is known, very little can be done now to modify it.". As far as the "no standardized test" -- I guess the word "standardized" prevents this from being an outright lie. I'm sure the company ATHEROTECH (800) 719-9807 will respond with their own press release. They provide Lp(a) serum blood level testing and are in a better position to comment.
Even Pauling doesn't stake his claim Lp(a) on whether levels can be modified (although research has shown vitamin C and B3 (niacin) can lower Lp(a) production in the liver.) It is true that no prescription drug has any affect on Lp(a) levels. Thus, no doctor has the power to prescribe something that the patient couldn't get otherwise. I believe this is the motivation behind articles like this. It promotes the fiction that there is no hope for combating Lp(a).
But the article is wrong. There is terrific hope. Studies are needed to verify the claims that plaque can be cleared in 2 weeks. Scientists like Pauling, knowing that Lp(a) particles are what cause everything else to stick to the walls of damaged blood vessels, came up with a way to inhibit the Lp(a) binding to the arterial wall. Their patent was APPROVED in 1994, or three years ago.