This guidance evaluates new, innovative diagnostic technologies. It includes all types of measurements and tests that are used to evaluate a patient's condition.
Diagnostic technologies may be used for various purposes. These include:
- ruling in or out a specific disease
- general examination looking for clues to the cause of the symptoms
- staging, or additional testing to assess how advanced or severe the disease is
- monitoring a patient over time to determine changes in their condition
- screening tests to look for conditions in patients without signs or symptoms of the specific condition.
Get a technology assessed
If you manufacture a diagnostic technology, you can ask us to consider it for guidance. We look at how it compares with technologies already available and if it offers advantages over current practice.
Diagnostics guidance
Our guidance helps people in the NHS make efficient, cost-effective and consistent decisions about adopting new products. It supports innovation, transformation and improves healthcare delivery.
How we develop guidance
- Diagnostics Assessment Programme process timeline.
- Diagnostics Assessment Programme manual (PDF).
This document only applies to appraisals that started with us before 1 February 2022. - Interim addendum on guidance reviews (PDF).
- Interim addendum on access proposals (PDF).
- Interim addendum on scoping workshops (PDF).
- Position statement on use of the EQ-5D-5L value set for England.
Get involved
To get involved, you can:
- Comment on draft recommendations.
- Take part in guidance development as a stakeholder.
- Attend a diagnostics advisory committee meeting.
Find out about changes we're making to health technology evaluation.
Static list
We regularly review our diagnostics guidance. If there is no new research or evidence available that would have a material effect on the guidance, it gets moved to the static list. If new evidence becomes available, the guidance can be transferred back to the active list for further appraisal.
The following guidance has been transferred to the static list.