Intelligent biosensing and point-of-care testing: from molecular recognition to decentralized precision care

Point-of-care testing (POCT) is changing the way diagnostic information is generated, interpreted, and used. Its value extends well beyond shortening turnaround time. A meaningful POCT result should support a defined clinical or public-health action, such as early triage, treatment selection, disease surveillance, referral, or longitudinal follow-up. In this sense, POCT is best understood as a distributed extension of laboratory medicine rather than a simplified replacement for the central laboratory (Banfi et al., 2024; Plebani et al., 2025).