Intraoperative Radiation Therapy Market - Growth, Trends, COVID-19 Impact, and Forecasts (2022 - 2027)

Intraoperative radiation therapy (IORT) is an intensive radiation treatment that is administered during surgery. IORT allows direct radiation to the target area while sparing normal surrounding tissue. IORT is used to treat cancers that are difficult to remove during surgery, and when there is a concern that microscopic amounts of cancer may remain.

The rising incidence of cancer, technological advancements, and advantages offered by IORT over conventional radiotherapy are the major factors driving the growth of the global market. Additionally, the growing clinical trials exploring the use of IORT for various cancer applications are expected to offer lucrative growth opportunities to market players.

However, the lack of skilled personnel to operate the equipment and preference for conventional radiotherapy over IORT hinders the growth of the market.

Key Market Trends

Electron IORT is Expected to Cover a Large Share of the Market

• Electron intraoperative radiation therapy or intraoperative electron radiation therapy (IOERT) is the application of electron radiation directly to the residual tumor or tumor bed during cancer surgery. Electron beams are useful for intraoperative radiation treatment, as the dose falls off rapidly behind the target site depending on the electron energy, therefore, sparing underlying healthy tissue.
• One of the advantages of IOERT is that it can be given at the time of surgery when microscopic residual tumor cells are most vulnerable to destruction. IOERT is also often used in combination with external beam radiotherapy (EBRT), resulting in less integral doses and shorter treatment times.
• Moreover, Cancer Research UK suggests that the population suffering from cancer is expected to increase in the future. As per the report, if recent trends in the incidence of major cancers and population growth are consistent, it is predicted that there will be 27.5 million new cancer cases worldwide each year by 2040. Thus, this is an increase of 61.7% from 2018 (17 million).
• Hence, with the increasing prevalence of cancer globally, the demand for novel therapies, like IOERT, and their advantages over conventional methods, are expected to increase if the awareness regarding these techniques increases.

North America is Expected to Dominate the Market

• The prevalence of cancer in the United States is one of the highest in the world. As per a 2018 report by the World Cancer Research Fund International, the prevalence of cancer in the United States is 352.2 per 100,000.
• As per the same report, Canada also has a high prevalence of cancer, with 334 per 100,000 Canadians suffering from the dreadful disease. This high prevalence of cancer has increased the economic burden of cancer on the population of this region.
• However, the United States and Canada have a developed and well-structured healthcare system. These systems also encourage R&D activities. These policies encourage global players to enter the United States and Canada.
• As a result, these countries enjoy the presence of many global market players. Hence, as high demand is met by the presence of global players in the region, the market is further expected to increase.

Competitive Landscape

Most of the intraoperative radiation therapy instruments are being manufactured by the global key players. Market leaders with more funds for research and a better distribution system have established their market position. Moreover, Asia-Pacific is witnessing the emergence of some small players due to the rise of awareness. Thus, this has helped the market to grow.

Additional Benefits:

• The market estimate (ME) sheet in Excel format
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