People across England and Wales are set to benefit from faster, fairer access to cutting-edge medical technology, following the launch of the government’s new National HealthTech Access Programme.
The programme, previously known as the Rules-Based Pathway, is a central commitment of the government’s 10 Year Health Plan, designed to end the long-standing problem of world-leading HealthTech reaching NHS patients too slowly or unevenly across the country.
NHAP represents a collaborative effort between NICE, the Department of Health and Social Care, NHS England, the MHRA, and the Office for Life Sciences, bringing together regulators and system leaders to streamline the adoption of innovative tools.
A major shift under NHAP is the expansion of NICE’s Technology Appraisals programme to include health technologies – not just medicines. This will enable a small number of high-impact devices and digital tools to be nationally reimbursed and made available across the entire NHS, ensuring rapid and consistent patient access.
NICE has confirmed that the first two technologies entering the pathway are capsule sponge tests for the early detection of oesophageal cancer, and AI tools for interpreting prostate and breast cancer tissue samples.
Both technologies are expected to transform early diagnosis, support workforce efficiency, and help unlock capacity across the health service.
Oesophageal cancer is often diagnosed too late, leading to poor outcomes and considerable strain on diagnostic services. Early-stage disease has a 95% five‑year survival rate, compared with 5–40% when found at an advanced stage.
The capsule sponge test – sometimes called a “pill on a string” – offers a less invasive alternative to endoscopy. It works by:
- A patient swallowing a small dissolvable capsule containing a compressed sponge.
- Once in the stomach, the capsule dissolves and releases the sponge.
- The sponge is gently withdrawn using an attached string, collecting cells from the oesophagus.
- These cells are then tested for abnormalities, including early cancer signs.
This method is quicker, simpler, and frees up endoscopy capacity for urgent cases.
NICE has also selected AI pathology tools that analyse tissue images to support the diagnosis of prostate and breast cancer, two of the NHS’s highest‑volume cancer pathways.
The AI systems can highlight suspicious regions in tissue samples, grade tumours, and reduce pathologists’ routine workload, whilst also improving consistency and reporting speed and enabling faster prioritisation of high-risk cases.
System-wide benefits include improved accuracy, reduced bottlenecks, and fewer geographical inequalities in diagnostic turnaround times.
Two additional innovations have been referred to NICE, subject to further evidence, with these being tools for detecting endometrial cancer in women with unexplained vaginal bleeding, and AI-supported chest X-ray analysis for suspected lung cancer in primary care.
If progressed, these technologies could further enhance early detection for high‑incidence cancers.
NHAP is one of three key NICE commitments under the 10 Year Health Plan:
- Faster, fairer rollout of high‑impact HealthTech
- Updated guidance to support smarter spending
- Parallel regulatory decisions to speed up patient access
Together, these will create a strategic open‑innovation model designed to unlock the UK’s full HealthTech potential, improve patient experience and support NHS professionals with modern tools.
Professor Jonathan Benger, NICE’s Chief Executive, said:
“When NICE was founded 26 years ago, it set out to end the postcode lottery in access to medicines. We’re now extending that same clarity and fairness to HealthTech. These reforms mean that clinically and cost-effective medical devices, diagnostics and digital tools will start to be reimbursed and made available consistently across the NHS. This will give patients faster access to proven technologies and ensure NHS resources are spent where they make the greatest difference.”
The government says NHAP will ensure the NHS is equipped to bring the most promising life-saving technologies to patients at pace – wherever they live – helping build a more efficient, equitable and future-ready healthcare system.
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