The IVD industry, which has returned to normal development, is bound to face a more intense competitive environment in the coming years. Choosing a quality track and diversifying the growth model of enterprises are incontrovertible ways to break through the bottleneck of enterprise development. Which field will have a broader development prospect?

1. Liquid Biopsy

Liquid biopsy technology can be defined as a molecular diagnostic technology that detects the DNA of cancer cells or tumor cell in blood samples. In recent years, this technology has gradually developed into a new and revolutionary molecular diagnostic method that is playing an increasingly important role in the clinical diagnosis of cancer and other diseases.

In a report published by Grand View Research on the global liquid biopsy market from 2021 to 2028, the global liquid biopsy market size was $7.03 billion in 2020; by 2028, the global liquid biopsy market size is expected to reach $19.35 billion, with a CAGR of 13.5%.

In the context of the increasing maturity of liquid biopsy technology and the entry of early cancer screening into the market, we believe that the market size of liquid biopsy in China is still significantly underestimated at this stage. Liquid biopsy has a huge potential market size in China, the potential market size of NGS-based cancer concomitant diagnosis, MRD (micro residual disease monitoring) and early screening and detection of cancer is expected to be US$4.5, US$15 and US$29 billion respectively by 2030, with an overall market space of about US$48.5 billion.

2. Mass Spectrometry

Mass spectrometry is an analytical method that measures the charge-to-mass ratio of ions. The instrument used to measure the mass spectrum is called a mass spectrometer. In recent years, with the significant increase in demand for analytical detection technology in various industries, mass spectrometers have seen rapid development in several fields with their advantageous features such as high resolution, high sensitivity, high throughput and high accuracy. According to Transparency Market Research, the global mass spectrometer market will grow at a CAGR of 7.70% from 2018-2026. According to the report from Intelligence Research Group, the Chinese mass spectrometer market size will reach approximately CNY 15.1 billion in 2020 and will reach CNY 23.5 billion in 2026.

3. PCR

Molecular diagnostics is a laboratory research method that uses DNA/RNA detection techniques to study constituent cells and body fluids to identify features and abnormalities at the molecular level.

The market size of qPCR instrument is expected to increase from RMB 2.8 billion in 2020 to RMB 7.7 billion in 2030, at a CAGR of 10.7%, in terms of revenue. Digital PCR instrument (dPCR instrument) enables absolute quantitative detection of nucleic acids and is a future trend in the development of PCR technology. According to a report by China Insights Consultancy, the dPCR instrument market size is expected to reach RMB 3.1 billion by 2030 on a revenue basis, accounting for a 27.3% market share of the overall PCR equipment market in China in 2030.

4. Gene sequencing

Gene sequencing is one of the methods of genetic testing, which has developed rapidly due to its advantages of high throughput and easy operation, and has become the fastest growing sub-sector in molecular diagnostics. Compared with PCR, FISH and gene chips, which can only detect known specific sequences, gene sequencing can detect nucleotides on gene sequences one by one, which is more informative.

According to data released by BCC Research, the global gene sequencing market size of US$15.722 billion in 2021 will grow at a CAGR of 19.1% to US$37.721 billion in 2026. The Chinese gene sequencing market is in its infancy, and the market size growth rate is higher than the global one, with huge upside. The Chinese gene sequencer and consumables market size growth rate is slightly higher than the global market, the CAGR of China market from 2015-2019 is 24.79%, the domestic market size is RMB 4.222 billion in 2019, it is expected to reach RMB 30.39 billion by 2030.

5. Chemiluminescence immunoassay

CLIA is one of the most accurate clinical immunoassays available. Immunodiagnosis accounts for a relatively large share of the in vitro diagnostic market size and is a mainstream quality track in the IVD field. With the continuous iteration of immunodiagnostic technologies, chemiluminescence, with its advantages of good specificity, high sensitivity, stable results and wide detection range, is gradually replacing enzyme-linked immunoassay and other qualitative methods as the mainstream diagnostic technology in the field of immunodiagnosis.

The Chinese chemiluminescent immunodiagnostics market size was approximately RMB 22.06 billion in 2019 and is expected to grow to RMB 103.46 billion in 2030, with a CAGR of 15.1% during the period, which is higher than the overall growth rate of in vitro diagnostics industry.