14th August, 2025
The National Pathology Imaging Co-operative (NPIC), based at Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust is proud to announce that three major NHS Trusts in North Central London have successfully gone live on the NPIC digital pathology network, marking an important milestone for digital healthcare innovation across the UK.
The Trusts, University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust , Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust (part of the joint venture partnership with The Doctors Laboratory which forms Health Services Laboratories), and Whittington Health , collectively serve a patient population of approximately 1.8 million across some of London’s most diverse and high-demand healthcare communities. Their integration onto the NPIC Digital Pathology platform represents a transformational step towards scaling cutting-edge digital pathology nationwide, and will help to bring the latest pathology technology advancements to increase efficient analysis and diagnosis for patients.
Breaking Regional Boundaries, NPIC Expands, becoming the UK’s First National Digital Pathology Network
This expansion to London, establishes NPIC as the first digital pathology network in the UK to move beyond traditional regional pathology networks. By joining forces with three of London’s leading NHS Trusts, NPIC connects leading pathologists and laboratory experts across England on a single national network. This creates unprecedented opportunities for NHS organisations to collaborate, share expertise, and deploy digital innovation at scale, setting a new standard for integrated, patient-centric diagnostic services, which is firmly aligned to the 10 year health plan and the shift from analogue to digital.
For pathology services, this means more than just technological advancement, it enables real-world clinical benefits that directly improve patient outcomes. Through the NPIC network, pathologists can seamlessly seek second opinions from subspecialty experts across the country, supporting faster, higher-quality decision making. Multidisciplinary Team (MDT) meetings become more efficient, with digital images and reports shared instantly between sites, reducing delays in complex case reviews and costs associated with transportation of glass slides. Critically, the network enhances the NHS’s ability to manage workload fluctuations, allowing pathology departments to rapidly share and redistribute cases between Trusts, a capability that is vital for subspecialties facing significant workforce pressures, where consultant shortages may impact the timeliness of diagnostic reporting at a local level.
By breaking down traditional geographic barriers, NPIC and their partners are ensuring that expertise, capacity, and high-quality diagnostic services are available wherever they are needed, delivering resilience and consistency for pathology across the healthcare system, and equity for patients.
“We are very pleased to welcome North Central London to the NPIC community. This is a significant milestone in our programme, demonstrating that it is possible to create a national digital pathology system that crosses regional boundaries.
We hope this marks the first steps towards other regions joining our national system, so many more patients and pathologists can share the benefits of our national programme”
Professor Darren Treanor – NPIC Programme Director
What This Means for Patients and NHS Pathology Staff in North Central London
For those patients cared for within these Trusts, joining the NPIC network will facilitate easier access to expert opinions, and aid to reduce delays which can impact patient outcomes. For NHS staff, the integration delivers new digital tools which can contribute towards streamlined workflows, reduce administrative pressures, and enable closer collaboration with a national community of clinical experts, enhancing both diagnostic quality and staff wellbeing.
Critically, this integration also provides a scalable, secure foundation for the adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) in diagnostic services in the future. This advancement places North Central London’s patients and healthcare workforce at the forefront of medical innovation, ensuring local communities benefit from world-class diagnostic services supported by the UK’s most advanced digital pathology infrastructure.
“The Digital Pathology transformation programme will change histopathology practice, strengthening diagnostic accuracy and opening a huge opportunity for application of AI platforms in diagnosis, education and research”.
Professor Manuel Rodriguez-Justo (Digital Pathology Lead – Cellular pathology at UCLH)
Beyond A Technical Partnership
NPIC’s role extends far beyond delivering technical infrastructure to support digital transformation across pathology services. Being part of the co-operative provides long-term, embedded support to each partner NHS Trust, ensuring that digital transformation translates into sustainable clinical and operational impact for the benefit of the patients it serves.
Following implementation, NPIC remains actively engaged with each organisation through continuous clinical training, equipping healthcare professionals with the skills to maximise the benefits of digital pathology for faster, more accurate diagnoses. Ongoing interactive webinars and peer-to-peer learning sessions foster collaboration and knowledge exchange across the national network, ensuring Trusts can share insights, innovations, and best practice.
The NPIC helpdesk offers expert support to address both technical challenges and clinical queries. On-site visits from NPIC’s clinical and technical teams also provide hands-on engagement, reinforcing local capability and building confidence in the adoption of new technology.
Crucially, this support network strengthens and evolves as additional NHS organisations join the NPIC digital pathology network. Every new NHS Trust brings additional expertise, case studies, and learning opportunities that collectively enhance the system for all participants, creating a dynamic, collaborative ecosystem where knowledge, innovation, and clinical excellence continue to grow.
This comprehensive model ensures that digital transformation translates into real-world improvements in patient care, clinical efficiency, and workforce empowerment.
“Adopting Digital Pathology will redefine the face of Histopathology. Transitioning from glass slides and traditional microscopes to a full digital platform will deliver significant benefits to our patients, including timely connections from local to national and global expertise. Moreover, the future integration of artificial intelligence will drive histopathology, accelerating the diagnostic process and enhancing accuracy”.
Dr Tu Vinh Luong (Digital Pathology Lead – Cellular Pathology at Royal Free London) and Dr Dhili Arul (Clinical Director for Pathology, Royal Free London)
Celebrating the Power of Partnership
NPIC’s national expansion has been made possible through strong, strategic collaboration across multiple sectors and through funding from the Digital Diagnostics Capability Programme within NHS England. This achievement reflects the combined efforts of key partners, including technology provider Exponential-e, imaging specialists SECTRA, Health Services Laboratories, and the NHS Trusts involved. Together, these organisations have played an essential role in driving innovation, building the infrastructure, and ensuring that this transformation delivers real benefits for patients and healthcare professionals alike.