Report plots a route towards better and earlier diagnoses
Research from Boston Consulting Group (BCG), Imperial College London and Siemens Healthineers suggests that implementing a technology-driven vision for the NHS could add £40bn to UK GDP annually through improved population health.
The report Faster, Better & Earlier Diagnosis says that such an approach could generate £12-18bn in NHS productivity gains through faster, earlier diagnosis and streamlined care, and unlock an annual benefit of £10-15bn from export of data and operational use.
A&E visits could be reduced by up to 30 per cent through better triage and preventative care, the authors state, while diagnostic technologies such as AI-powered early detection tools could greatly improve outcomes, particularly in deprived communities. Embedding diagnostic data into clinical research could cut drug development timelines in half, accelerating access to breakthrough treatments while boosting the UK’s competitiveness as a global clinical trials hub, they state.
Five opportunities for action are outlined: to accelerate adoption of AI-powered diagnostics by integrating regulatory bodies (eg MHRA, NICE) and enabling real-time monitoring for low risk innovations; pilot and rapidly scale successful diagnostic technologies and care models using long-term health economic evaluation via National Innovation Zones; build an integrated digital ecosystem combining NHS diagnostic data, AI tools and patient interfaces (eg NHS App) to enable personalised care; launch NHS-compliant AI training datasets to accelerate testing, improve data access frameworks and attract investment and digital talent; and, lastly, promote innovation as a tool for health equity, engage patients in the design of new technologies and embed digital education from an early age.
Read this report on page 13 of the August 2025 issue of RAD Magazine.
