The term diagnostics covers a very broad range of activities, but at its simplest level can be divided into two broad strands – in vivo and in vitro diagnostics, the former relating to tests carried out within the body of a patient while the latter (meaning “in glass”) being carried out remotely using samples from the patient.
As in vivo testing tends to be performed by medical professionals in a hospital or clinic environment, the commercial opportunities in diagnostics mostly fall into the in vitro camp and the industry's activities include testing for mainstream diseases, analysing saliva for evidence of drug misuse, determining genetic disposition to health problems, assessing potential organ or tissue donors and even using blood tests to determine stress levels.
Recent trends towards personalised medicine have spurred growth in the in vitro diagnostics (IVD) point-of-care (POC) diagnostics market. A real growth sector, especially in the UK, has been in self-diagnosis apparatus and kits with which consumers can test themselves for conditions such as diabetes, high blood cholesterol or high blood pressure. Investment in this sector is expected to rise, according to the following industry drivers:
- Diagnostics can be developed faster (under 5 years) and cost less to develop than drugs
- Return on investment is increasing 3 to 5 fold for diagnostic devices
- Profitability is increasing due to higher uptake
- Reimbursement authorities are becoming more supportive of diagnostic use to reduce long-term healthcare costs associated with disease misdiagnosis and mismanagement
The SEEDA region has some of the world’s leading diagnostic companies working across a broad range of areas, including diabetes, infectious diseases, cancer, and immunology. Some major players in the region include Abbott Diagnostics, Ortho-Clinical Diagnostics (a Johnson & Johnson company) and Roche Diagnostics. The diagnostic sector in the region includes approximately 250 companies, comprising almost 14% of the UK’s total diagnostics sector, with estimated revenues of £515 m.