The 80-Billion Dollar IVD Market: Five Fast Facts from New Report

Kalorama Information recently released its report on the 80+ billion dollar in vitro diagnostic market. Among other information and intense market segmentation in the 1,800+ page report was the following:

  • 1) A Market Growing at Five Percent Per Year: In Vitro Diagnostics are essential to patient care and that is known in 2020 more than any other year with the onset of COVID-19. While it’s too early to predict what will happen with specific testing for COVID, it is estimated that it will be with us into next year and perhaps beyond. Besides that, testing in other areas – new liquid biopsy tests for cancer, new and popular genetic tests, hematology, insect bite tests, hbA1c, not to mention increased use of respiratory panels to rule out COVID-19 and detect other bugs will boost the market.

 

  • 2) IVD Influences $8 Trillion+ Dollars of Other Markets: While the IVD market is large enough on its own, IVD industry also influences other markets. It is a gatekeeper on at least five markets, and likely more – most notably the pharmaceutical market, where companion tests are used to optimize and monitor therapy. It is also important for the physician and hospital service markets, which represent six to eight trillion dollars in revenue depending on estimates. Markets for clinical lab services, biotech research and healthcare IT are also influenced by what happens in in vitro diagnostics.

 

  • 3) COVID-19 Testing Added Nine Billion Dollars to the Market, Most of it PCR: The bulk of growth in 2020 is expected to come from pandemic-related testing for COVID-19. This testing is estimated at $9+ billion dollars. Most of this is molecular RT-PCR tests for the virus. It is beyond the ability of our analysts or most predictors of healthcare markets to predict the path of the virus or treatment outcomes. Some attention must be given to these factors for short-term forecasts. Given the number of variables – vaccine development, an effective anti viral drug or a significant reduction in cases worldwide for other reasons – it is not clear how far into the future this accelerated PCR and antibody testing volume and market will continue.

 

  • 4) Cancer Testing is Down But Long-Term Still Represents Growth Opportunity:. Many areas of testing took a hit with the COVID-19 pandemic. One of those segments hard-hit was cancer preventative and detection tests, particularly histology. Cancer tests, particularly those performed in histology labs, were negatively impacted by COVID-19. Kalorama believes the market for these tests is down 8.3% between 2019 and 2020. However, the lost test procedures and physician visits are slowly being compensated for with re-openings and remote work; growth in in situ hybridization will remain above IVD market average at 6% growth. HPV molecular testing was impacted by coronavirus-related causes per Kalorama’s surveys but we project this market at 13%. Cancer prevention must and will continue and any decreases are temporary.

 

  • 5) Few Companies Own Most of the Market, But Opportunity for Others: IVD is a market controlled by a few top companies; Kalorama estimates that 19 companies earned most of the revenue. Among these are IVD leader Roche Diagnostics but also Abbott, Siemens Healthineers, Danaher, bioMerieux, Qiagen, Quidel, Bio-Rad, Thermo Fisher Scientific and others. These companies are profiled and detailed in Kalorama Information’s report: https://kaloramainformation.com/product/the-worldwide-market-for-in-vitro-diagnostics-13th-edition/. Even in COVID-19 testing, consolidation is reflected. About ten companies (Roche, Abbott, Cepheid, bioMerieux among them) were among labs favored tests, at least in the United States per a recent Association for Molecular Pathology survey. Due to perfection of production, expert distribution and acquisition of companies, a select group of companies dominate IVD.

What does that mean? Less than one might think. There’s still opportunity in this industry. The remainder of the market is held by 100s of companies; some, of which, specialize in specific test segments and others serve their local markets. IVD remains dynamic. There are constant innovations. This report documents these innovations in each segment market chapter. The IVD industry is a high R&D spend industry, and there is routine interest from venture capital firms in diagnostic products

More information can be found in The Worldwide Market for In Vitro Diagnostic Tests, 13th Edition: https://kaloramainformation.com/product/the-worldwide-market-for-in-vitro-diagnostics-13th-edition/

/by Justin Dudash