Randox launches new product to test for thyroid hormones

Randox has produced a biochip to simultaneously test for three thyroid hormones.

The Thyroid Array biochip can be used in initial screening tests for thyroid-stimulating hormones released by the brain that are essential in the diagnosis of thyroid disease.

A company statement said that although the biochip tests for three thyoid hormones in a single sample, its evidence analyser offers the unique option of "reflex reporting".

"If the TSH test result is within the normal range, only the TSH result is reported and the laboratory only pays for one test," he added.

Concluding: "If the TSH test result is elevated or low, the thyroxine and tri-iodothyronine test results are automatically reported as well."

The company was founded in 1982 by Dr Peter Fitzgerald and now claims to be a multi-million pound business employing 600 people, including 185 research scientists.

It recently launched a partnership with Northern Irish charity, Action Cancer, to raise public awareness of bowel cancer.