Nuclear Medicine Market Size & Share Analysis - Growth Trends & Forecasts (2024 - 2029)

Nuclear Medicine Market Size & Share Analysis - Growth Trends & Forecasts (2024 - 2029)

The Nuclear Medicine Market is expected to grow significantly at a CAGR of 9.5% during the study period, 2022-2027.

Globally, the COVID-19 pandemic has placed significant challenges on healthcare systems and has been primarily managed by dramatically reducing in- and outpatient services for diseases and implementing infection prevention and control measures. For instance, according to a study published in June 2022, titled '2022 follow-up: impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on nuclear medicine departments in Europe', overall, the pandemic impacted nuclear medicine education in most countries (84%). This was broken down into affecting different employment groups as follows: technologists-78%, radio pharmacists-59%, physicists-67%, and physicians-74%. However, the overall study results showed that nuclear medicine services worldwide had been significantly impacted. Regarding staff health, 15% of respondents experienced COVID-19 infections within their departments.

The studied market is expected to grow significantly during the study period due to the rising prevalence of cancer and cardiac diseases and the increasing demand for image-guided procedures and diagnostics. In recent years, research collaborations and partnerships have grown in prominence in the radioisotopes market. This is also a prominent factor leading to market growth.

Nuclear medicine deals with the use of radioactive substances in research, diagnosis, and treatment. Increasing incidences of cancer and cardiac ailments are the major drivers for the market studied. Nuclear medicine shows a huge potential in treating cardiac and cancer diseases. According to GLOBOCAN 2021, there were 19.3 million new cancer cases worldwide in 2020, with the number expected to rise to 30.2 million cases by 2040. As nuclear medicines are used in cancer treatment, such as radiotherapy, there is an increasing demand for nuclear medicine, thereby driving the market.

Other factors, such as increasing SPECT and PET applications and growing public awareness of healthcare, are expected to drive the market in the future. Single photon emission computerized tomography (SPECT) finds applications in cardiology, which provides metabolic and functional information about the heart. It is a non-invasive technique that involves injecting radioactive tracers into the bloodstream to get pictures that indicate whether a patient has cardiovascular disease.

Following the introduction of therapies for neuroendocrine tumors, prostate cancer, and other oncologic malignancies, the use of beta-emitting radiopharmaceuticals for cancer therapy has accelerated in recent years. Due to its chemical equivalence with the well-known positron-emitting isotope 64Cu, 67Cu is a new beta-emitting radioisotope of interest for therapy. For instance, As per a study published in January 2021 titled "Imaging and dosimetric characteristics of 67 Cu", Cu 67 produced quality clinical images and indicated that future studies investigations for therapeutic efficacy Cu 67-based radiopharmaceuticals were acceptable. Thus, the use of radioisotopes like Cu 67 in clinical diagnosis and treatment is expected to boom shortly.

Additionally, the launch of nuclear medicine centers providing accessibility to nuclear medicine treatments across the world is further expected to boost the market. For instance, in May 2022, Penang Adventist Hospital (PAH), located in Pulau Pinang, Malaysia, launched a full-fledged private nuclear medicine center in northern Malaysia. The new facility offers diagnostic and treatment procedures for specific conditions and diseases such as hyperthyroidism, thyroid cancer, lymphomas, and bone pain caused by different types of cancer.

Thus, due to the above-mentioned factors, the studied market is expected to grow significantly during the study period. However, the stringent regulatory guidelines and high cost of therapeutic and diagnostic instruments and procedures are expected to hinder the market growth.

Nuclear Medicine Market Trends

Oncology Segment is Expected to Show Better Growth Over the Forecast Period.

The major factors responsible for the growth of this segment include the rise in the prevalence of cancers that require advanced diagnostics like PET/CT scans. The rise in funding for the treatment of these disorders is also expected to boost innovation and research leading to market growth.

The increasing prevalence of cancer is boosting the demand for radioisotopes for nuclear imaging for research purposes across the world. According to a study published by Richard P. Dittrich and others at Southend University Hospital NHS Foundation Trust in January 2021, there have been many new developments in gallium's utility, now as a gallium-68 labeled radiotracers including a shorter half-life, on-site generation, somatostatin receptor, prostate (68Ga-PSMA-11 PET/MR) tracers, and other cancer diagnoses, including boney and soft tissue metastasis. Also, 68Ga-DOTATATE plays a role in other somatostatin receptor tumors such as renal cell cancer, breast cancer, prostate cancer, malignant lymphoma, hepatocellular cancer, medulloblastoma, neuroblastoma, sarcoma, and gastric cancer. Such studies are helping in implying the use of radioisotopes such as gallium 68 for cancer imaging. Therefore, driving the growth of the market.

Similarly, according to an article published by Jared Sagoff in May 2021, titled,' Accelerating cancer treatments with the power of isotopes,' Radioisotopes are used in several ways for cancer treatment. Radioisotope allows doctors to visualize a tumor's precise location and contours within the body with greater clarity than an MRI scan provides and radionuclide to deliver cancer-killing radiation directly to tumor cells. According to the same source, Copper-67 is one of the isotopes of interest being studied by researchers at Argonne National Laboratory. Researchers are also investigating scandium-47, another exciting theragnostic isotope, and actinium-225, which has shown great promise for treating cancer. Therefore, driving the growth of the market.

Moreover, the launch of new products and services in the market is expected to boost growth during the study period. For instance, in February 2022, Applied Molecular Therapies launched 177Lu(n.c.a.)-PSMA-Therapy, a molecularly targeted radiopharmaceutical, for treating prostate cancer.

Hence, the market is expected to grow due to the above-mentioned developments.

North America is Expected to Dominate the Nuclear Medicine Market Over the Forecast Period

North America is the dominant market for nuclear medicine. Within North America, the United States is one of the largest consumer markets for radioisotopes, and Canada is one of the leading producers of Tc-99m. The robust growth of the healthcare sector in the United States, increasing incidences of cancer, the growing geriatric population, and the increase in product launches that are leading to the rising use of radioisotopes along with greater initiatives and investments toward advanced healthcare solutions involving cancer treatment, is expected to boost the market growth.

There is also increasing investment in cancer disease research and treatment in the United States. According to data published by the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) at the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC), the investments for cancer were estimated to reach up to USD 7,176 million in the year 2021. This was a marked increase from the 2020 figures of USD 7,035 million. Since treatment with radioisotopes is a novel field, rising investments in cancer research are expected to boost its growth during the forecast period.

Additionally, several key players are taking initiatives for the development of new technologies and improving radioisotopes options in the United States. For instance, in September 2021, Eckert & Ziegler Radiopharma GmbH successfully submitted an amendment to their Drug Master File (DMF) to the United States Food and Drug Administration for GalliaPharm. Gallium-68 from GalliaPharm is used for the preparation of diagnostic imaging drugs in Positron Emission Tomography (PET). With the development of generators with higher Ge-68 activity and the amendment of our DMF, there will be increasing demand for Ga-68-based diagnostics in the United States.

Also, in September 2021, NorthStar Medical Radioisotopes, LLC and POINT Biopharma Global Inc. signed a supply agreement for the therapeutic medical radioisotope actinium-225 (Ac-225). NorthStar will provide POINT with its electron accelerator-produced Ac-225, and POINT will use NorthStar's Ac-225 in investigational studies of PNT2001, a next-generation Prostate-Specific Membrane Antigen (PSMA) for non-metastatic castrate-sensitive prostate cancer.

Moreover, the mark of new entrants offering products in the studied market further indicates the huge potential to grow, thereby driving the market during the study period. For instance, in March 2022, Bracco Imaging launched Blue Earth Therapeutics to advance the development of therapeutic radiopharmaceutical technology. Blue Earth Therapeutics is building a pipeline of precision-targeted therapeutic radiopharmaceuticals, initially focused on prostate cancer, with plans to expand into additional disease areas in oncology.

Hence, the above developments are expected to aid the growth of the market studied in the North American Region.

Nuclear Medicine Industry Overview

The studied market is moderately fragmented. There is high competition among the players in the global nuclear medicine market. However, this competition is not by competitive pricing or product differentiation. Additionally, big players in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries are leveraging their huge capital reserves to venture into this market, which is further increasing the competition. Major players in the market include GE Healthcare, Lantheus Medical Imaging, Advanced Accelerator Programs, Cardinal Health Inc., and Curium, among others.

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