Patient guide · Preventive medicine · 5 min read
Screening and diagnostics, how private screening and diagnostic pathways differ, and how we structure them.
Screening tests catch problems in people without symptoms — diagnostics investigate specific symptoms. This guide explains the difference, why the sequencing matters, and how our concierge team structures a coherent workup rather than isolated tests.
Key facts
Six things to hold in your head before you book anything.
The framing that separates a coherent annual plan from a shelf of unconnected reports.
- 01
Screening
Asymptomatic, risk-based testing — you feel well, we test anyway.
- 02
Diagnostics
Symptom-driven investigation — a specific complaint pointed at a specific test.
- 03
Sequencing matters
Screen, then confirm, then treat — the order changes the answer.
- 04
Age and family history
Both drive the schedule, and both are edited each year.
- 05
False positives are real
Overdiagnosis and false alarms cause harm — worth naming before we start.
- 06
Concierge model
One clinician holding the plan reduces duplication and stray tests.
The pathway
From first conversation to structured annual review — what happens, in order.
Seven steps. One clinician holding the plan across all of them.
- 01
Before
Consultation and goal-setting
A confidential conversation about what you want out of the year — reassurance, risk reduction, or investigation of something specific.
- 02
Before
Personal and family history
A structured history covering conditions in first- and second-degree relatives — the single most useful piece of data.
- 03
Before
Age and risk stratification
We layer age, ethnicity, lifestyle and comorbidities to decide which screens are useful and which are noise.
- 04
On the day
Screening menu selection
A shortlist you approve — bloods, imaging, cognitive, hearing, vision. Nothing bolted on for the sake of it.
- 05
On the day
Diagnostic testing where symptomatic
If you have symptoms, we branch into a diagnostic pathway rather than a screen — sequenced, not scattered.
- 06
After
Consultant follow-through on any positive
Anything abnormal is routed to the right consultant, with the referral written, sent and chased on your behalf.
- 07
After
Structured annual review
A single letter each year that pulls it all together — what changed, what to repeat, what to drop.
What it covers
The eight domains a good annual plan touches.
Not everything for everyone — the right subset for you, edited each year.
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Cardiovascular risk (CV screen)
Bloods, blood pressure, ECG and imaging where indicated — the whole vascular picture.
-
Cancer risk (organ-specific)
Prostate, breast, bowel, lung and skin — the four or five that carry the risk in most adults.
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Metabolic risk (diabetes, lipids)
HbA1c, full lipid panel and, where indicated, Lp(a) — the metabolic backbone of the annual review.
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Bone health (DEXA)
DEXA in the right ages and risk groups — osteoporosis is silent until it isn’t.
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Mental health screen
Validated anxiety and depression tools, alongside a proper conversation.
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Hearing and vision
Audiology and an ophthalmology check — both under-tested, both easily remedied.
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Cognitive screen (over 65)
A brief, validated cognitive assessment folded into the annual review, from 65 onward.
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Red flag: positive screen — urgent diagnostic confirmation
A positive screen is a call for confirmation, not a diagnosis — we move fast to the definitive test.
What we do about it
The eight levers we pull, once we know what we’re looking at.
Each one selected on the merits — nothing added by default, nothing left out for form.
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Lifestyle optimisation
Diet, movement, sleep and alcohol — the interventions with the biggest whole-life effect, laid out concretely.
-
Pharmacological risk reduction
Statins, antihypertensives, GLP-1s and others — used where the numbers justify them, not by default.
-
Diagnostic confirmation pathway
Any positive screen triggers a defined confirmatory investigation — no waiting, no ambiguity.
-
Specialist referral
Direct routing to the right consultant, chosen for the specific finding, not the nearest name on a list.
-
Genetic counselling (BRCA / Lynch)
Where family history warrants it, we arrange formal genetic counselling and testing.
-
Ongoing surveillance schedule
A written schedule of what to repeat, when, and why — kept in a single document you own.
-
Structured GP + concierge follow-up
Your GP is kept in the loop with a shared record — the concierge team holds the plan between visits.
-
Multi-disciplinary team review
Where a case warrants it, we convene the relevant consultants around a single table.
Red flags
Findings that change the plan — urgently.
A positive screen is not a diagnosis, but it is a call for confirmation, fast.
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Positive cancer screen
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Family history without genetic testing
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Uncontrolled hypertension on screen
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Suspicious skin lesion on mole check
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Cognitive decline on screen
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Unexplained weight loss
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Positive faecal immunochemical test
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Elevated PSA rising
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High Lp(a) with premature ASCVD
Sources
The guidance this page rests on.
Reviewed on 2026-07-30. Next review 2027-07-30.
Frequently asked
The questions we get about screening and diagnostics.
Six honest answers on frequency, false positives, genetics, and how the concierge model actually differs.
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What is the difference between screening and diagnostics?
Screening is testing an asymptomatic person for a specific condition based on their risk profile. Diagnostics is the investigation of a specific symptom or an abnormal screen. The two use overlapping technology but answer different questions — and the order matters.
-
How often should I be screened?
Frequency depends on age, family history, ethnicity and prior findings. Most adults benefit from an annual review with a rotating menu of tests, rather than the full battery every year.
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Are false positives really a problem?
Yes. Every screening test carries a false-positive rate, and the investigations that follow can cause harm — anxiety, invasive procedures, overtreatment. Screening should be chosen deliberately, not by default.
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What happens if a screen comes back abnormal?
An abnormal screen triggers a defined confirmatory pathway — the definitive diagnostic test, arranged urgently, with a named consultant. A positive screen is a signal to confirm, not a diagnosis.
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Do you cover genetic testing?
Where family history warrants it — BRCA, Lynch syndrome, familial hypercholesterolaemia and others — we arrange formal genetic counselling and testing through a consultant clinical geneticist.
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How is the concierge model different?
One clinician holds the whole plan across the year. That reduces duplication, catches drift between specialists, and means the annual letter reads as a single coherent story rather than a stack of unconnected reports.
Related
Where to go next.
-
Health assessments
Advanced full-body assessments, structured across a half or full day.
Learn more -
Private prostate screening
PSA, MRI and consultant urology — the definitive prostate pathway.
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Lung cancer screening
Low-dose CT screening for the right risk profile.
Learn more -
All tests
Browse every test and procedure we arrange.
Learn more -
Hypertension
Related condition guide.
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Type 2 Diabetes
Related condition guide.
Learn more -
Cognitive Behaviour Therapy
Related treatment option.
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Complementary Alternative Medicine
Related treatment option.
Learn more
In practice, in London
Booking screening and diagnostics privately in London — what actually happens
With screening and diagnostics, the London question is usually about report turnaround and the radiologist reading it — not whether the scan is available. The wait for screening and diagnostics on the NHS depends heavily on where you live and how urgently the referral is graded. Central and West London private clinics can normally book within a week, with imaging or a procedure slot to follow shortly after. It’s worth being honest about the reason for going private: usually it’s time, not a fundamentally different test.
A private screening and diagnostics pathway in London usually looks like this: an initial consultation, any diagnostics booked at a nearby facility (most within Zone 1 or 2), and a written report sent to you and your GP within a few days. The consultants we work with hold NHS posts alongside their private lists, which keeps the standards consistent across both settings. For screening and diagnostics specifically, the difference between a routine report and a sub-speciality read is where private care earns its keep.
The value of going through a concierge for screening and diagnostics isn’t access — anyone with an insurer or a credit card can get a private appointment in London. The value is knowing which consultant reads this particular presentation best, which unit turns reports around fastest, and which pathway won’t hit a dead end if the findings point somewhere unexpected.