Editorial Health Engineering: Convergence Transforming Reactive Medicine to Proactive Healthcare

N ONCOMMUNICABLE diseases (NCDs), also known as chronic diseases, continue to be the leading causes of mortality and morbidity in the world. According to the World Health Organization, NCDs kill 41 million people each year, or are 71% of all deaths globally. Cardiovascular diseases account for most NCD deaths (17.9 million annually), followed by cancers (9.0 million), respiratory diseases (3.9 million), and diabetes (1.6 million). These four types of diseases account for over 80% of all premature NCD deaths [1]. Between 2010 and 2050, the proportion of the world’s population older than 65 years of age will almost double, and that older than 85 will be 3.5 times as large [2], [3]. Mainly due to the increasing aging population, it is projected that total deaths from NCDs will continue to rise over the next decades if no effective and preventive measures are taken. NCDs tend to be long and dynamic processes that begin before any symptoms and are the result of a combination of behaviors, lifestyle choices, and environmental, physiological, and genetic factors. Considering the future burden of NCDs and other unmet grand healthcare challenges, various national health policies and strategies have placed emphasis on their prevention and control. For example, the Healthy China 2030 Plan, drafted jointly by over 20 departments, has set a vision for a greater focus on prevention, rather than treatment, and for an expanded health industry through health sciences and technology innovation. It is the first medium in a long-term strategic plan developed at the national level in the health sector over the past 69 years since the founding of China in 1949 [4]. How do we achieve the goal of disease prevention? The seminal report by Sharp and Hockfield, two world-renowned biologists at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, argue that truly major advances in the fight against NCDs, the diseases of aging, and other pressing health challenges will only come from a novel research strategy—convergence that integrates biomedical knowledge with advanced engineering skills and expertise from life sciences, physical sciences, mathematics, and information technology [5]. Convergence can enhance early diagnosis and early prevention. Sharp and Hockfield pointed out specifically that “catching problems at their outset can save on costly later-stage or last-minute treatment. Wearable smart devices that monitor health and wellness will alert patients and doctors to incipient health issues. Paired with advances in health information technologies that integrate molecular and genomic data, wearable monitors can help prevent disease progression. Meanwhile, algorithms to enable data-driven medical decisions can help doctors use the best available evidence quickly” [5]. Eric Topol, an eminent cardiologist and geneticist, captures the essence of the technical convergence of six major technological advances—smartphones, personal computers, the Internet, electronic devices and biosensors, genetic sequencing, and social networks—that are driving dynamics to precipitate a new era of proactive healthcare [6]. The convergence research model provides a blueprint for addressing society’s most pressing health challenges and is leading to a revolutionized healthcare system that enables the participation of all people for the early prediction and prevention of diseases, such that preemptive