AI in Oncology Market Size

AI in Oncology Market Analysis

The AI in Oncology Market size is estimated at USD 1.46 billion in 2024, and is expected to reach USD 6.71 billion by 2029, growing at a CAGR of 35.51% during the forecast period (2024-2029).

One of the main aspects that supported the market growth during the pandemic was the increased adoption of AI to diagnose, treat, and analyze complicated datasets, which helped to minimize the burden on the hospital infrastructure and the physicians. According to the article published by Elsevier in December 2021, the recent advancements in AI and machine learning (ML) boosted the diagnosis and treatment of lung cancer through the utilization of cutting-edge technologies. For instance, the incorporation of clinical and imaging data with ML methods led to the differentiation between lung infections produced by immunotherapy and those produced by the COVID-19 virus.

In addition, the risk of the COVID-19 virus is higher in those already suffering from lung cancer. As per the article published in the Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Care in November 2020, cancer patients, particularly those with lung cancer, have weaker immune systems, making them more susceptible to COVID-19 and other consequences. Also, due to lockdown restrictions, cancer patient diagnosis, treatment, and care were particularly challenging during the pandemic. Modern AI and ML offer the potential to improve cancer patient diagnosis, care, and therapy in such circumstances.

Furthermore, during the pandemic, AI was employed to manage the backlog of cancer imaging, reducing workloads on healthcare professionals. As per the article submitted by Springer Nature Limited in October 2022, AI was being used for the detection of skin cancer, lung cancer, breast cancer, and cervical cancer to assist in managing the backlog of cancer image analysis that grew as a result of the workforce shortages during the pandemic.

The key factor that is anticipated to propel market expansion over the forecast period is high cancer prevalence all over the world. For instance, as per the American Cancer Society, Inc., there will be around 1.9 million new cancer diagnoses and 609,360 deaths due to cancer in the United States by the end of 2022. Additionally, according to the WHO, in February 2022, lung, breast, rectum, and colon cancers were the most common ones. Furthermore, globally one-third of cancer deaths occur due to the increase in body mass index, high tobacco use, and lack of physical activity. Thus, the rising prevalence of cancer worldwide is likely to boost the adoption of AI for its accurate diagnosis, thereby contributing to the growth of the market studied.

In addition, the expanding healthcare infrastructure advancements worldwide are also propelling the market growth. For instance, in July 2021, the Centre for Fourth Industrial Revolution of the World Economic Forum India announced the launch of the Fourth Industrial Revolution for Sustainable Transformation (FIRST) of the Cancer Care project to focus on advanced technologies like AI, IoT, and blockchain to deliver affordable, easily accessible, and high-quality cancer care in India. Thus, the expansion of healthcare infrastructure is expected to boost market growth during the forecast period.

Furthermore, in recent years, there has been a surge in the adoption of AI in the radiographic imaging of breast cancer for its early detection and diagnosis. Federal agencies have increased the approval of various AI and machine learning (ML) based medical devices for breast cancer diagnosis, which is burgeoning the market growth. For instance, FDA has approved around 178 AI/ML-based medical devices till October 2022, such as Visage Breast Density medical device by Visage Imaging GmbH in January 2021 and Imagio Breast Imaging System by Seno Medical Instruments, Inc., in January 2021. Thus, owing to the active involvement of the FDA in the approval of numerous AI-enabled medical devices is expected to have significant growth over the forecast period.

Therefore, owing to the factors as mentioned above the market studied is anticipated to witness growth over the forecast period. However, high initial costs and concerns over the replacement of the human workforce are likely to impede market growth.