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Stage 7: Tests and Treatments

How medicines, tests, scans and procedures work.

Medicines

How drugs work, side effects, interactions and safe prescribing.

  • How medicines work (coming soon)
  • Side effects and safety (coming soon)
  • How Your Body Processes a Medicine (coming soon)
  • Taking Medicines as Prescribed (coming soon)
  • When Medicines Interact (coming soon)
  • Understanding Painkillers (coming soon)
  • Tolerance, Dependence and Withdrawal (coming soon)

Investigations

Blood tests, X-rays, CT, MRI and ultrasound — how to read and understand results.

  • Blood tests explained generally (coming soon)
  • Imaging: X-ray, CT, MRI and ultrasound (coming soon)
  • Why No Test Is Perfect (coming soon)
  • Urine, Stool and Swab Tests (coming soon)
  • Heart Tracings and Monitoring (coming soon)
  • Camera Tests: Endoscopy and Scopes (coming soon)
  • Biopsy: What Happens to a Sample (coming soon)

Procedures

Surgery, anaesthesia, keyhole procedures and consent — what happens and why.

  • Surgery and procedures (coming soon)
  • Anaesthesia Explained (coming soon)
  • Before and After a Procedure (coming soon)
  • Keyhole and Minimally Invasive Procedures (coming soon)
  • Consent and Shared Decisions (coming soon)

Screening

How screening works, why it is offered, what a result means, and its benefits and harms.

  • Screening programmes (coming soon)
  • Screening Is Not Diagnosis (coming soon)
  • What Makes a Good Screening Test (coming soon)
  • When Screening Can Do Harm (coming soon)