Methods for Evaluating Models, Tests And Biomarkers (MEMTAB) 2025

7th International Conference, 29th April – 1st May 2025

University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK

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**** REGISTRATION & ABSTRACT SUBMISSION & PRE-CONFERENCE COURSES NOW OPEN ****

 

Details:

29th April: pre-conference courses, followed by welcome reception

30th April: conference day 1, followed by evening meal and entertainment

1st May: conference day 2

 

Location:

University of Birmingham (main campus), Edgbaston, UK.

 

Accommodation:

On campus: Edgbaston Park Hotel https://www.edgbastonparkhotel.com/

Many other options in and around Edgbaston & Birmingham City Centre

 

Description:

MEMTAB is the leading international conference about methods to evaluate models, tests, and biomarkers for clinical practice and healthcare. Bringing together all types of researchers and stakeholders in the field, the conference aims to debate and disseminate best methods for identifying reliable models, tests and biomarkers that improve the screening, diagnosis, prognosis and monitoring of patients.

 

In 2025, we return to the University of Birmingham and raise the conference theme:

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    “Evidence That Stands the Test”

 

We want participants to push our understanding of what constitutes the research evidence needed for models, tests and biomarkers to be reliably endorsed, communicated and deployed in practice.

 

*** Abstract submission, registration & pre-conference course booking NOW OPEN! *****

 

Topics:

The conference focuses on methodology for models, tests and biomarkers.

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Topics of interest include (but are not limited to):

• screening and early diagnosis

• emerging technologies including multi-condition tests and self-tests

• evaluation, regulation and implementation

• education and communication, including to policy makers, patients and public

• examining and improving fairness and generalisability

• quantifying uncertainty and handling different types of variability

• clinical pathways for diagnosis, prognosis and monitoring

• impact assessment and monitoring strategies

• patient & public involvement and engagement (PPIE) in methods research

• study design (including sample size, sources of data, reporting)

• novel approaches including AI, machine learning, decision analytics & counterfactual prediction

• early-phase research

• systematic reviews & meta-analyses, especially using individual participant data

• health economics and decision analysis

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Pre-conference courses (29th April 2025):

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Each course will last the whole day and is open to those registering for the conference

 

(1) An Introduction to Clinical Prediction Models and Sample Size Calculations for Model Development & Evaluation

 

Clinical prediction models are used to estimate an individual’s risk of a health-related outcome to help guide patient counselling and clinical decision making. Examples include QRISK, which is widely used in the UK during primary care consultations to estimate a person’s 10-year cardiovascular disease risk. 

  

In this course, participants will be provided with an introduction to clinical prediction models and how to improve standards, which currently are often poor. A pathway will be described from model development to model evaluation and impact assessment.  

 

We then focus primarily on sample size calculations for model development and evaluation. We introduce the theory behind existing and emerging approaches, and showcase the pmsampsize, pmstabilityss and pmvalsampsize packages in Stata and R that implement them. Hands-on practicals are included, and participants will be supported by a dedicated and experienced faculty. Participants are required to bring their own laptop with either R or Stata installed. 

 

Faculty includes: Dr Joie Ensor, Dr Kym Snell, Dr Lucy Archer, Dr Becky Whittle, Dr Amardeep Legha and Prof Richard Riley from University of Birmingham

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(2) Systematic reviews of prognosis studies

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Prognosis studies are abundant in this era of personalized and precision medicine, which all has to do with prognosis research. Hence, systematic reviews of prognosis studies are increasingly required and conducted. 

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This workshop will introduce participants to the different types of prognosis research and explain the differences between prognosis, diagnosis and intervention studies. We then provide explicit guidance how to define a proper review question using the PICOTS format, to design a review protocol, to search the literature, to extract the data using the CHARMS checklist, to assess the risk of bias in the primary studies using PROBAST+AI and QUIPS, and finally to conduct a meta-analysis of the retrieved data and test for heterogeneity across studies. We will illustrate all this using many empirical examples, and frequently apply small group practicals and discussions. 

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After this workshop, participants have a good overview of the essentials of prognosis research and systematic reviews of such studies.

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Faculty includes: Dr Anneke Damen, Prof Karel Moons from UMC Utrecht