Cancer & infectious diseases to drive adoption of point-of-care medical sensor

Sensor-based point-of-care medical devices that can be used outside hospitals will first make an impact in cancer care and infectious diseases as rapid innovation, coupled with regulatory and insurer enthusiasm, drives adoption, according to Lux Research.
 
Three major sensing technologies – imaging, optical molecular and electrochemical – will be ready for strong adoption in oncology by 2030, while the more challenging infectious diseases will see similar adoption but mainly of electrochemical.
 
“Decisions on which sensors to develop depend heavily on market dynamics and requirements, as needs differ from one indication space to another,” said Milos Todorovic, Lux Research Analyst and lead author of the report titled, ‘Sensing (is) the future of health care: Technology roadmapping helps find the way’.
 
He added, “The time to get into point-of-care medical diagnostics is now, given the long product development cycles in the highly regulated medical devices industry, because today’s decisions will impact market performance beyond 2020.”
 
Over the next decade, optical coherence tomography (OCT) will emerge as the dominant imaging technology in cancer care as novel imaging modalities start disrupting large legacy systems such as MRI, CT and PET.
 
Infectious diseases pose a big challenge for medical sensors, mainly on account of the sheer number of pathogens. Most approaches focus on in-vitro diagnostics (IVD), with electrochemical sensors seeing the largest adoption due to high stability.
 
“Sensors for neurology are less mature than those for infectious diseases and cancer, but potentially represent the largest opportunity in the long run due to demographic and epidemiological trends. Electrodes and imaging will lead the pack for neurological uses,” said Lux Research in a press release.