Fig. 2.

Anatomical analogy of a predictive tool for precision prediction that incorporates relevant axes of biology. (a) A robust and reproducible PS denoting a specific diabetes subtype or risk burden would serve as the ‘static’ skeleton, obtained at any point in the individual’s lifetime and signifying its relative immutability. That score would be actualised by robust and reproducible temporal metrics that denote the current developmental and/or metabolic state of the individual, and which could take the form of (b) environmental variables (muscle), (c) circulating biomarkers (blood vessels) and/or (d) behavioural traits (nerves), which together (e) offer a holistic picture of prediction. Each of these elements would need to be shown to be robustly associated with clinical outcomes and be cost-effective. This figure is available as part of a downloadable slideset