The ongoing outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) started in December of 2019. It has surpassed the death toll of the SARS outbreak of 2003.

In 2018, a lot happened in global pharmaceuticals industry. For example, the approval of second CAR T-cell therapy tisagenlecleucel (Kymriah) signified the dramatic progress in the field. While the industry witnessed uncertainties due to the U.S. presidential elections and weak economic growth in 2017, steady growth has returned.

BCC Research’s just published report Opioid Drugs: Global Markets to 2023 provides a comprehensive overview of the opioid market as well as the market for abuse prevention technologies. This edited excerpt provides an overview of a few of these emerging technologies.

It is now normal to call biotech and small pharma the innovation engines for the pharmaceutical industry. IPO and ICOs abound, as dollars from venture capital truly flood the ecosystem. In 2018, biopharma investment is having a moment. Any big fluctuation, even a positive one, makes stakeholders nervous. Some of the investors might be tourists—Amazon, Google, Apple, IBM, JP Morgan, Berkshire Hathaway and a half dozen others are new entrants, whose long term goals remain unclear. Particularly disturbing are the health insurance and supply chain changes that make headlines, such as this one.

Urgency for an Antidote to Elephantitis

The opioid epidemic continues as one of America’s greatest public health crises as healthcare officials, public officials and countless Americans struggle to prevent opioid abuse, addiction and death. In a blog from 2017, Laurie Sullivan explores how one solution, known as The Smart Pill Drug Delivery Device, could be used to curb the crisis. Another possible solution? Prescribing more non-opioid painkillers. Click here to be notified when the BCC Research report “Non-opioid Pain Treatment: Global Markets to 2022” publishes later this month.

Smart pills are increasingly influencing our health. They are noninvasive and have redefined diagnosis, disease monitoring, and treatment adherence. By 2021, US sales of smart pills may double, reaching $1.2 billion. The global market for smart pills is poised to exceed a 20% compound annual growth rate (CAGR) during the next five years, according to BCC Research’s recent study, Smart Pills: Applications and Global Markets. High-growth application areas include capsule endoscopy, patient monitoring, and delivery of therapeutic agents. The adoption of advanced ingestible medical sensor technologies is a key growth driver.

A higher incidence of chronic diseases worldwide and the demand for advanced medication adherence systems are fueling growth in this market, which has the potential to surpass $3.9 billion by 2021. A new study by BCC Research examines the industry’s prospects and technologies by disease applications and geographical regions.

Liquid biopsy is rapidly gaining traction as a supplement or alternative to tissue biopsy. Earlier this year, we noted that liquid biopsies continue to draw investments, and efforts prevail to establish the technique in mainstream medicine. Liquid biopsies have been likened to a Holy Grail of cancer treatment. By means of a simple blood draw, liquid biopsies aim to replace needle biopsies of solid tumors, which can be expensive for the healthcare system as well as painful for patients. For diagnosis of cancer, liquid biopsies could spare some of the risky tissue biopsies and reduce reliance on computed tomography scans, which must be limited because of the danger posed by overexposure to radiation.

The steadily increasing demand for substance abuse test equipment forms a building block for medical technology companies, according to a new study by BCC Research. From estimated sales of $3 billion in 2016, the global drug testing industry is predicted to reach almost $4 billion by 2022. Technological advances and the entry of new innovative companies in the diagnostics industry have transformed the market.