High blood pressure is one of the most common health problems in the world. It affects hundreds of millions of people and greatly increases the risk of heart disease, stroke, and kidney damage. Doctors often describe high blood pressure as a silent condition because many people do not feel symptoms until serious damage has already occurred.
To understand high blood pressure, it can help to imagine a balloon being filled with air. As more air goes in, the pressure inside the balloon rises. If the pressure becomes too high, the balloon may stretch, weaken, or even burst.
A similar process happens inside the body. When blood pushes too strongly against the walls of the arteries for a long time, it can damage the heart and blood vessels.
For many patients, doctors cannot identify a clear cause of their high blood pressure. In these cases, the condition is often called essential hypertension. Because the exact cause is unknown, most patients must take medication for the rest of their lives to keep their blood pressure under control.
However, a new study from researchers at Queen Mary University of London, Barts Hospital, and Cambridge University Hospitals suggests that some people with high blood pressure may actually have a hidden and treatable cause.
The research team discovered that small lumps inside a hormone‑producing gland can be responsible for high blood pressure in some patients. These tiny growths appear in the adrenal glands, which sit on top of the kidneys and produce hormones that control many important functions in the body.
The findings of this research were published in the medical journal Nature Medicine.
The adrenal glands produce a hormone called aldosterone. This hormone helps control the balance of salt and water in the body. When aldosterone levels become too high, the body holds onto extra salt and fluid. This increases the volume of blood in the bloodstream and raises blood pressure.
In some people, small non‑cancerous lumps called adenomas form in the adrenal gland. These lumps can produce large amounts of aldosterone without the body’s normal control system. As a result, blood pressure rises and becomes difficult to manage.
Researchers believe these hormone‑producing lumps may be responsible for high blood pressure in about one out of every twenty people with the condition. This means a significant number of patients might have a treatable cause of their hypertension.
For more than sixty years, doctors have struggled to find reliable ways to detect these lumps. The traditional test involves taking blood samples from veins near the adrenal glands, a difficult procedure that only a small number of hospitals can perform. Even when the test is done correctly, the results are not always clear.
The new study introduces a much simpler and more accurate method.
The research team used a special type of CT scan along with a dye called metomidate. This dye attaches specifically to the cells that produce aldosterone. Because the dye contains a very small amount of radioactivity, the cells light up clearly on the scan for a short time.
This allows doctors to see exactly where the hormone‑producing lump is located.
In the study, the researchers examined 128 patients whose high blood pressure was linked to excessive aldosterone production. When they performed the new scan, they found that about two‑thirds of the patients had a small lump in one adrenal gland that was producing the extra hormone.
Once doctors identified the lump, they were able to remove it through surgery.
For many of these patients, removing the lump solved the problem completely. Their blood pressure returned to normal levels, and they no longer needed to take long‑term medication.
Professor Morris Brown, one of the leading scientists involved in the research, explained that these lumps are usually extremely small and often invisible in ordinary medical scans. With the new technique, however, the lumps briefly glow on the imaging scan, making them much easier to detect.
Another member of the research team, Professor William Drake, said the discovery represents years of careful work by doctors, scientists, and medical staff. He noted that the team continued their efforts even during the difficult period of the COVID‑19 pandemic.
The study also builds on earlier research from the same group. In previous work, they discovered that some people develop a genetic mutation in their adrenal glands. This mutation causes the glands to produce too much aldosterone, which then drives up blood pressure.
Patients with this hormone problem often do not respond well to standard blood pressure medications. They also face a higher risk of heart attacks, strokes, and other serious health problems.
Because of this, finding and treating the underlying cause could greatly improve their health.
The new scanning technique offers an important breakthrough. Instead of managing high blood pressure with lifelong medication, doctors may be able to cure the condition in certain patients by removing the tiny hormone‑producing lump.
Experts believe that many people around the world may currently have this condition without knowing it. Before this new scanning method was developed, researchers estimate that about 99 percent of these cases went undiagnosed.
The discovery opens the door to new ways of diagnosing and treating high blood pressure. Doctors hope that with wider use of this scanning method, more patients will be identified and treated successfully.
While not every case of high blood pressure can be cured, this research shows that some patients may have a clear and treatable cause hidden deep inside the body.
For those individuals, a simple scan and targeted surgery could offer something many people with hypertension never expected: a chance to live without lifelong medication.
If you care about high blood pressure, please read studies that early time-restricted eating could help improve blood pressure, and coconut sugar could help reduce blood pressure and artery stiffness.
For more information about blood pressure, please see recent studies about added sugar in your diet linked to higher blood pressure, and results showing plant-based foods could benefit people with high blood pressure.
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