diagnostictherapeutic

Diagnostictherapeutic, also written diagnostic-therapeutic, is a descriptive term for an approach in medicine in which diagnostic evaluation and therapeutic decision making are integrated to optimize patient outcomes. It is not a formal subspecialty, but a concept used across disciplines such as nuclear medicine, radiology, oncology, and personalized medicine. The central idea is to use diagnostic information to select the most appropriate therapy, and to use therapeutic response and follow-up data to refine diagnoses and adjust treatment.

Applications include theranostics in which the same or related agents are used for both diagnosis and treatment. For example, in neuroendocrine tumors, PET imaging with radiolabeled tracers such as 68Ga-DOTATATE is used to stage disease and select candidates for therapy with 177Lu-DOTATATE; similarly, in prostate cancer radioligand therapy is guided by PSMA-targeted PET imaging. In thyroid disorders, diagnostic scans with iodine isotopes help determine the extent of disease and guide radioactive iodine therapy. In interventional radiology and oncology, imaging modalities guide procedures and adapt treatment plans in real time.

Benefits of diagnostictherapeutic approaches include more precise patient selection, timely therapy initiation, and iterative refinement of management based on imaging and biomarkers. Challenges include the need for specialized infrastructure, multidisciplinary coordination, regulatory considerations, and cost. Ethical and logistical considerations center on patient informed consent, radiation exposure, and access to advanced diagnostic and therapeutic tools.

See also Theranostics, nuclear medicine, image-guided therapy, personalized medicine.