Non-communicable diseases (NCDs), such as cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, cancer, and chronic respiratory illnesses, are the leading causes of death globally, disproportionately affecting low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) and under-resourced settings. These regions often face systemic health system challenges, including limited diagnostic infrastructure, poor health literacy, delayed diagnosis, and fragmented referral pathways. The resulting late-stage presentation contributes to higher morbidity and mortality, increased treatment costs, and greater socioeconomic burden.

Early detection and effective linkage to care are critical components in the global response to NCDs. However, in complex systems marked by health inequities, achieving timely screening, diagnosis, and follow-up requires context-sensitive, cross-disciplinary, and scalable interventions. These include but are not limited to community-based health screening programs, digital health innovations, task-shifting to community health workers, and culturally embedded health communication strategies. Integrating systems thinking and data-driven approaches can reveal interdependencies between social determinants of health, resource availability, and intervention outcomes.

Despite growing attention to NCDs in global health discourse, there remains a significant research gap in understanding how best to design, implement, and scale early detection strategies and care pathways tailored for under-resourced and historically disadvantaged populations. Understanding and addressing NCDs in under-resourced settings requires a complex systems perspective that considers dynamic interactions across individual, community, and structural levels. By framing NCD detection and care as emergent outcomes of interdependent social, technological, and institutional factors, this Research Topic contributes to the broader exploration of complexity-informed strategies for improving health equity and system resilience.

This Research Topic aims to bring together interdisciplinary insights, empirical research, and innovations that advance early detection and linkage to care for NCDs in resource-limited settings. We welcome contributions that explore system-level approaches, digital and community health strategies, and implementation science frameworks that bridge detection and care, especially in marginalised or rural populations. Contributions should reflect theoretical and applied perspectives, focusing on context, equity, and sustainability.

This research topic highly welcomes original research articles, review manuscripts and methods articles covering, but not restricted to, the following aspects:
- Community-based screening models for NCD risk detection
- Integration of mHealth or eHealth platforms in early diagnosis
- Health systems and policy innovations for linkage to care
- Role of primary health care workers and task-sharing in NCD detection
- Implementation and evaluation of NCD referral pathways
- Health equity, gender, and socio-economic dimensions in NCD care
- Artificial intelligence and data science applications in early detection
- Participatory research involving patients and communities

This collection aims to bridge disciplinary boundaries and offer scientifically rigorous and locally relevant solutions. Our ultimate goal is to contribute to a global knowledge base that can inform policy, practice, and future research in NCD care for vulnerable populations.

Articles

Frontiers in Complex Systems

Multi- and Cross-Disciplinary Complexity