“Diagnostics and Therapeutics” is the paired engine of modern healthcare: diagnostics generate actionable evidence about what is happening in the body, and therapeutics use that evidence to choose (and adjust) interventions that improve outcomes. As medicine becomes more data-rich—through molecular testing, advanced imaging, and continuous monitoring—the relationship between diagnostics and therapeutics is shifting from a linear “test-then-treat” workflow to a dynamic feedback loop that refines decisions over time. 1) What “Diagnostics” Means (Beyond Simply Naming a Disease) In clinical practice, diagnostics refers to the tools and methods used to detect, characterize, and track disease-related signals. Importantly, diagnostics is not a single test—it’s a system of evidence that supports decisions across the entire care pathway: Screening diagnostics: detect risk or early disease signals before symptoms are obvious. Diagnostic confirmation: distinguish between conditions with similar presentations. Prognostic diagnostics: estimate likely disease course and severity. Predictive diagnostics: forecast whether a patient is likely to benefit from a specific therapy (a key concept in precision medicine). Monitoring diagnostics: measure response, relapse, or adverse effects over time, enabling treatment adjustment. Major diagnostic categories used today Clinical laboratory diagnostics (blood, urine, tissue, etc.) and medical imaging are foundational, but the fastest-growing…
