Our findings that all our five candidates are independent predictors for CVD risk (NT-proBNP, HbA1C, CRP and Cystatin-C for MI, and GDF-15, NT-proBNP and CRP for stroke) are consistent with these previous studies, and we also found a similarly strong association of marker combinations with risks of both MI (HRQ4-Q1 = 2.87, after adjustment for other established CVD risk factors) and stroke (HRQ4-Q1 = 2.44). The gene discussed is GDF15; the disease is stroke disorder.