How can someone have yellowing of the eyes and NOT have elevated bilirubin? So... either someone HAS yellowing of the eyes due to bilirubin (and the bilirubin blood test is CONSIDERABLY more sensitive than eye color) with elevation of the bilirubin and liver dysfunction (but liver injury and may or may not have significant cirrhosis right then). Or... they don t Alcohol addiction is not defined by laboratory tests. It is defined by drinking behaviors that put people at odds with a normal life. This includes alcohol dependence (withdrawal effects if not constantly taking alcohol), relationship issues, legal issues, changes in thinking to maintain alcohol intake when it isn t pleasant for anyone, etc. I really cannot comment on this particular case because the information is quite inconsistent. Cirrhosis is scarring of the liver. Would drastically affect liver s ability to put out proteins. If the proteins (albumin) are VERY LOW, then water seeps out. One can have water seeping out just because one is subsisting entirely on alcohol and not taking in food and low b vitamins (thiamine) causes the blood vessels to not hold up. This is only in incredibly bad alcohol contexts AND can be fixed IN HOURS TO DAYS with simply taking thiamine (injected preferred; oral quite good enough). But, people look very sick with either low albumin or low thiamine. LAb tests are very abnormal. GGT is the most sensitive indicator of alcohol intake. It generally is NOT elevated unless someone is taking considerable alcohol, but it frequently can be the ONLY abnormal test.