Five million Britons are set to take part it what is hoped will become the UK’s largest ever health research programme.
Our Future Health will aim to develop new ways to prevent, detect and treat diseases and health conditions such as stroke and heart disease.
A major focus will be on developing approaches for identifying diseases such as cancer before they become symptomatic.
Volunteers from across the social, cultural and economic spectrum will be asked to answer questions about their health and lifestyle and provide a blood sample.
More than 3,000 people took part in the pilot phase last year.
The project has been endorsed by 16 leading health charities, including the Stroke Association.
Professor Sir John Bell, Chair of Our Future Health, said:
“Our Future Health is designed to harness the power of collaboration.
“The combination of support from industry and charities that we’re announcing today, alongside our existing funding from the government, means we’re on track to build Our Future Health into a world-leading health research programme.
“Hopefully it will lay the ground for a bold new approach to healthcare in the NHS, focused on early detection and prevention of disease.
“We look forward to welcoming participants into this exciting programme.”
Despite advances in healthcare and medicine, many people in the UK spend many years of later life in poor health due to common conditions including stroke.
Our Future Health research found that 59 per cent of people in the UK aged 65 and above had two or more of the following conditions: stroke, hypertension, coronary heart disease, arthritis, cancer, dementia, depression, diabetes, respiratory disease and sight loss.
That figure is projected to reach 70 per cent by 2035.
Dr Andrew Roddam, CEO of Our Future Health said:
“Millions of people in the UK and around the world spend many years of their later life in poor health.
“Our Future Health aims to tackle this and help people live healthier lives for longer, by creating the UK’s largest ever health research programme to prevent, detect and treat diseases.
“By building a world-leading health research resource that truly reflects the UK population our goal is to develop a more detailed understanding of what makes some people more likely to develop certain health conditions, so more effective tests and treatments can be developed in the future.”
