New HealthTech Research Centre in In Vitro Diagnostics Launches

The NIHR HealthTech Research Centre in In Vitro Diagnostics recently launched.

“The launch of the Centre marks a pivotal moment in the UK’s approach to diagnostics. We will address the generic challenges faced by innovators, using research directed at overcoming evidence needs gaps." Professor George Hanna Director of the HRC IVD

The NIHR HealthTech Research Centre in In Vitro Diagnostics (HRC IVD) launch event brought together industry, academia, and the healthcare sector to discuss the Centre’s ambitions and priorities.

Funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) and hosted by Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust and Imperial College London, the HRC IVD will support the development and adoption of diagnostics.

With a focus on cancer, infectious and respiratory diseases, critical care, and primary and social care, the HRC IVD offers expertise in regulatory approvals, real-world evidence generation, health economics, and overcoming adoption barriers.

A ‘one-stop’ research facility to accelerate NHS adoption of IVDs

Professor George Hanna, Director of the HRC IVD and Head of the Department of Surgery and Cancer, opened the event by highlighting the Centre’s critical role in bridging the gap between innovation and clinical practice. He was joined by Imperial College London’s Professor Mary Ryan, Vice Provost for Research and Enterprise, and Professor Deborah Ashby, Dean of the Faculty of Medicine, and Dr Alex Churchill, Deputy Director at the Department of Health and Social Care.

“The launch of the Centre marks a pivotal moment in the UK’s approach to diagnostics” said Professor Hanna. “We will address the generic challenges faced by innovators, using research directed at overcoming evidence needs gaps. Our ‘one-stop shop’ research facility aims to create a pipeline of new diagnostic excellence for industry, regulators, patients and the NHS.”

The HRC IVD team, currently based at Hammersmith Hospital, is also establishing a Real-World Challenge Laboratory at the Imperial White City Campus, which will house a Human Factors Simulation Laboratory. This facility, available from December 2025, will assess system performance when introducing new diagnostics - evaluating safety, efficiency, utility, and flexibility - while also providing opportunities for skills training.

Professor George Hanna presenting the Centre's critical role

Introducing the Centre’s Priorities

The event featured presentations from leads across the Centre’s Methodology and Clinical Themes. Professor Peter Buckle and Dr Melody Ni of Imperial outlined how they are supporting innovators in refining their technologies to meet clinical and regulatory requirements in a question and answer.

Clinical experts provided insights into the Centre’s core areas of focus:

Cancer: Co-Led by Professor Dow-Mu Koh, Consultant Radiologist at The Royal Marsden and Institute of Cancer Research
Infectious and Respiratory Diseases: Presented by Dr Ankur Gupta-Wright, Postdoctoral Clinician Scientist at Imperial College London
Primary and Social Care: Co-Led by Professor Laura Shallcross, Professor of Public Health at University College London
Critical Care: Led by Professor Anthony Gordon, Head of the Division of Anaesthetics, Pain Medicine and Intensive Care at Imperial College London

Showcasing Cutting-Edge Research

Attendees also had the opportunity to learn from real-world case studies, including:

AI Clinician – A tool, created using AI techniques, capable of automatically reviewing patient data in real-time and recommending the correct dose of sepsis medication in intensive care by Dr Matthieu Komorowski, Senior Lecturer at Imperial College London and Honorary Consultant in Intensive Care and Anaesthesia
Breath Test – A non-invasive, easy to complete breath test to be used by GPs, aimed at gastrointestinal cancer detection, introduced by Dr Caoimhe Walsh, Clinical Research Fellow, Department of Surgery and Cancer at Imperial College London

Professor Tim Orchard, chief executive of Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust, said: "As the lead NHS Trust for the NIHR HealthTech Research Centre in In Vitro Diagnostics, we're pleased to be bringing together research and innovation to advance diagnostics and get them into patient's lives sooner.

“The breath test for early detection of gastrointestinal cancers is a great example of how we can support the validation of new diagnostics, streamline pathways and increase the chance of patient survival."

Addressing the Big Challenges in Healthcare

The afternoon session featured Natalie Owen, Head of NIHR Research Infrastructure, who shared the emerging themes from the 10-Year Health Plan that the HRCs can respond to, including ensuring data used is equitable and reflects the whole population. This was followed by a series of lightning talks from regulatory and industry leaders, including Nadine Neale (MHRA), Ross Stevenson (BIVDA), and Stephen Lee (ABHI), who shared how their organisations work with innovators to navigate regulation, evidence, funding and sustainability.

Helen Dent, CEO, BIVDA said: "Diagnostic tests play a critical role in all NHS services, with the NHS conducting on average 1.5 billion diagnostic tests each year.

The HRC IVD will help to advance diagnostics and ensure they play a part not only in the diagnosis of conditions, but in prevention and treatment of disease. Our members are dynamic and exciting and we are looking forward to collaborating with the teams to help innovators navigate regulatory frameworks and the life science landscape.”

The patient perspective was added by PPIE Board Member, Stella O’Brien, who shared the importance of involving patients in research from the start. The HRC IVD aims to establish a research ecosystem that embraces EDI and PPIE principles and recently announced their PPIE Strategy 2024-29.

Chris Peters, Biomarker Lead at HRC IVD and Consultant in UGI surgery at Imperial College London introduced the Biomarker Toolkit, a resource designed to assess the quality of biomarker research and predict the likelihood of a biomarker achieving clinical adoption.

Mr Chris Peters, Professor Peter Buckle, Dr Melody Ni presenting.

Looking Ahead: The NHS 10-Year Plan

A panel discussion chaired by Neelam Patel, Strategy Advisor at HRC IVD, focused on the NHS 10-Year Plan. The panel explored how diagnostics can support the NHS’s strategic shifts towards prevention, personalised medicine, and digital transformation.

A Future of Innovation and Impact

As the event concluded, Professor Hanna reiterated the Centre’s commitment to fostering collaboration across all the organisations in the room to ensure the most promising diagnostic tools make their way into clinical practice.

Mary Ryan, Vice Provost for Research and Enterprise, Imperial College London said: “One aspect of the Imperial Strategy is to harness the diversity of our community so that everyone contributes their perspective, experience and skills to deliver a shared mission of science to serve humanity.

"The HRC IVD aligns with this by getting the right voices in the room and giving them the tools and levers to make new ideas a reality and accelerate diagnostics into clinical practice."

The launch of the HRC IVD represents a significant investment in the future of in vitro diagnostics, with the potential to change the way diseases are detected and managed across the UK healthcare system.