Nuclear Imaging Market Size, Share, Industry, Forecast and outlook (2024-2031)

Nuclear Imaging Market is segmented By Product Type (Hybrid Pet, Standalone Pet, Hybrid SPECT, Standalone SPECT, Planar Scintigraphy), By Application (Cardiology, Neurology, Oncology, Others), By End-User (Hospitals, Research Centres, Academic Centres, Diagnostic Centres, Others), and By Region (North America, Latin America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Middle East, and Africa) – Share, Size, Outlook, and Opportunity Analysis, 2024-2031

Report Overview

The Nuclear Imaging Market is expected grow at a CAGR of 12.9% during the forecast period 2024-2031

Nuclear imaging produces images by detecting radiation from different parts of the body after a radioactive tracer material is administered. Nuclear imaging is a nascent imaging technology that uses a small number of radioactive substances linked to compounds used by the body's cells or compounds that attach to tumor cells.

Nuclear Imaging Market Summary

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Nuclear Imaging Market Trends

Nuclear Imaging Market growth is driven by the increasing focus on personalized medicines and technological advancements in radiotracers. Moreover, growing pharmaceutical industries and the rising prevalence of chronic diseases such as cancer will enhance market growth.   

The technological advancements in the field of nuclear imaging will drive the market growth 

The technological advancements in the field of imaging have always been challenging to practitioners in how best to optimize them in patient care. Over recent years, scientists, researchers, and technologists have been able to bring systems into clinical practice, in which two or even more two standalone diagnostic imaging modalities are combined. Some of those multimodality imaging systems include PET/CT, SPECT/CT, PET/MRI, and PET/SPECT/CT.

Overall usage of nuclear medicine procedures is expanding rapidly, especially as new imaging technologies, continue to improve the accuracy of detection, localization, and characterization of disease, and as automation and miniaturization of cyclotrons and advances in radiochemistry make the production of radiotracers more practical and versatile.

Moreover, the rise in the prevalence of cancer and cardiac ailments is one of the primary drivers for the market. Nuclear medicine is hugely capable of treating cancer and cardiac diseases. There is significant evidence, which proves that diagnosing with nuclear imaging techniques has more impact on patient management for monitoring tumors and also their response to the drug.

The shortage of the radionuclide Tc99m is likely to hamper the market growth  

However, the field of nuclear imaging is currently observing a shortage of the radionuclide Tc99m (technetium 99), which is the most commonly used isotope for imaging the body in nuclear medicine scans. This worldwide shortage of radioisotopes will impact the majority of diagnostic scans done in the nuclear medicine clinic.

COVID-19 Impact on Nuclear Imaging Market Growth

The COVID-19 outbreak has significantly impacted the availability of hospital resources worldwide. This has been primarily managed by dramatically reducing in-patient and outpatient services for other diseases and implementing infection prevention and control measures. Both diagnostic and therapeutic nuclear medicine procedures declined precipitously, with countries worldwide being affected by the pandemic.

Most of the nuclear imaging scans and therapies are carried out in outpatient departments as follow-up cases whereas new studies are usually dealt with in inpatient departments after going through COVID-19 screening. Nuclear medicine lacks portable SPECT and PET scanners, and there is a constant need to inject the patient with radiopharmaceuticals so the movement of the patient is not restricted. Hence nuclear medical workers must have a thorough knowledge of precautionary measures to prevent COVID-19 transmission. A majority of heart patients who go through nuclear cardiology procedures are usually above 60 years of age and carry other extreme health risks such as diabetes, hypertension, and chronic renal and lung diseases. All of these factors make them highly vulnerable to developing COVID-19 and have led to a decrease in the number of nuclear imaging procedures. However, many healthcare experts believe that this reduction in the number of procedures is temporary.

Nuclear Imaging Market Segments

The oncology segment is expected to grow at the fastest CAGR during the forecast period (2024-2031)   

The prevalence of various types of cancer has shown a significant rise over the past two decades. According to the statistics of the Lymphoma Research Foundation, each year, more than 100,000 people are diagnosed with lymphoma, and nearly one million people in the United States are living with, or are in remission from, lymphoma. It third-most-common cancer in children. The FDG-PET/CT is more sensitive than contrast-enhanced CT scan in the staging of several types of lymphoma or in detecting tumor dissemination in several solid cancers, such as breast cancer, lung cancer, and colon cancer.

In the field of oncology, PET (positron emission tomography) uses FDG (18Fluorine-2-fluoro-2-Deoxy-d-glucose) as the radiopharmaceutical, as it demonstrates the increased metabolism by malignant cells when compared to that of normal cells. Furthermore, there is continuous technological progress in the field of image generation. The introduction of sophisticated software to use PET scans as a biomarker has facilitated new ways to calculate new prognostic markers, such as the metabolic tumor volume (MTV) and the total amount of tumor glycolysis (TLG). The 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose (18F-FDG) has high sensitivity, but it is not tumor-specific. This technique can be used for the imaging of lung cancer, lymphoma, head and neck tumors, breast cancer, esophageal cancer, colorectal cancer, and urinary tract tumors. Hence, all the aforementioned technological advancements are expected to drive growth in this segment of the market studied, over the forecast period.

Nuclear Imaging Market Geographical Share

North America region holds the largest market share of the global nuclear imaging market

North America is expected to dominate the global nuclear imaging market in the forecast period. In 2016, the AMIPA (American Medical Isotope Production Act) and the DOE/NNSA (Department of Energy) established a Uranium Lease and Take-Back (ULTB) program in the United States. Under this program, the DOE/NNSA makes LEU (Low Enriched Uranium) available through lease contracts for the irradiation and production of Mo99 for medical uses. The AMIPA not only promotes the domestic production of Mo-99 but also aims to replace the role of HEU (High Enriched Uranium) in the production of medical radioactive isotopes.

Moreover, Canada is one of the largest producers of Technetium-99m. With the use of Tc-99m in radiopharmaceuticals, the market is expected to grow at a tremendous rate in Canada. It is also combined with a variety of biologically active molecules to perform non-invasive, real-time imaging of the human body.

Furthermore, there has been increasing awareness among people in this region about nuclear medicine treatment and diagnosis, which, in turn, has increased the prescriptions by physicians. These factors will drive the growth of the market in the forecast period.

Nuclear Imaging Companies and Competitive Landscape

The nuclear imaging market is a moderately competitive presence of local as well as global companies. Some of the key players which are contributing to the growth of the market include Bracco Imaging SpA, Cardinal Health Inc., GE Healthcare, Koninklijke Philips NV, Siemens Healthineers, Curium, CMR NAVISCAN (GAMMA MEDICA INC.), Nordion (Canada) Inc., NTP Radioisotopes SOC, Canon Medical Systems Corporation among others. The major players are adopting several growth strategies such as product launches, acquisitions, and collaborations, which are contributing to the growth of the Nuclear Imaging Market globally. For instance, in May 2018, Curium enhanced its position in the French PET market with the acquisition of Cyclopharma’s French commercial and manufacturing operations.

GE Healthcare Inc.

Overview:

GE Healthcare Inc. produces medical equipment. The Company offers scanners, monitors, dispensers, imagers, displays, recorders, analyzers, separators, and other laboratory and medical equipment for medical and medical research industries worldwide.   

Product Portfolio:

NM 830: SPECT’s ability to reveal physiologic and metabolic changes gives you a unique tool for diagnosing and treating patients. It’s this ability to make visible what could normally be invisible that enables true discovery in nuclear medicine. Whether you’re looking for your first nuclear medicine camera or you need one to handle overflow from your rising patient volume, our SPECT-only system is designed to grow with your practice with a lower initial investment.