From early diagnosis to optimal diagnosis: a conference report on what excellent innovation should look like

Early diagnostic technologies such as in vitro diagnostic medical devices (IVDs) have been promoted by many, including the UK government (2010–2024) as part of its Industrial Strategy.¹ In 2024, the new UK government stated that a priority was to ‘make the UK a life sciences and medical technology powerhouse…the government will drive the development of new treatments and help grow the industries’.²

While enthusiasm for new technologies could be potentially transformational in the ways we diagnose and treat disease, there are tensions in terms of how these should be tested, evaluated and used. As the UK has exited the European Union and plans to introduce its own In Vitro Diagnostic Regulation, there are opportunities to improve the way in which innovations are brought to market. The Evidence-Based Early Diagnosis 2024 conference was held in St Andrews, under Chatham House rule, in partnership with the BMJ. This aimed to bring stakeholders together to explore the successes, challenges and tensions that currently exist in the early diagnosis sector. Participants included patients, policymakers, clinicians, scientists and industry colleagues.³ The opportunity was presented to analyse emergent themes on the contemporary use of early diagnosis technology, focused in the UK.