Market Challenges And Opportunities
| Restraints & Challenges: |
- Data privacy and security concerns
- Interoperability challenges
- Budgetary constraints
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Virtual Oncology Market Drivers:
- Rising prevalence of cancer globally: The rising prevalence of various types of cancer worldwide is a major factor driving growth in the virtual oncology market. As per the World Health Organization (WHO), cancer was responsible for nearly 10 million deaths in 2020, making it a leading cause of mortality globally. The number of new cancer cases per year is expected to rise to 29.5 million by 2040. With the increasing cancer burden, there will be a greater need for technologies like virtual oncology that can improve screening, diagnosis, treatment planning, and management for cancer patients. Virtual oncology solutions enable optimization of workflows, remote expert consults and data-driven decision-making in oncology. Their adoption is rising to meet the demands of increasing cancer prevalence.
- Advances in artificial intelligence and big data analytics: Recent advances in AI, machine learning, and big data analytics are driving the adoption of virtual oncology solutions. The technologies are enabling analysis of, multidimensional cancer datasets to obtain actionable insights for precision care. For instance, AI can analyze digital pathology images to identify cancerous cells. Big data analytics facilitates evidence-based treatment decisions by discovering associations in disparate oncology data. Companies are integrating AI and big data capabilities into their virtual oncology platforms. In October 2021, Koninklijke Philips N.V., a health technology company, launched its IntelliSite Pathology Solution with AI-enabled augmented reality for better cancer diagnosis. AI and big data analytics enhance the functionality of virtual oncology tools.
- Increasing app launches for cancer clinical trials: There has been rapid growth in clinical trials and research activities to develop personalized medicine and targeted therapies for cancer. Virtual oncology solutions facilitate seamless data collection, sharing, and analysis during trials, enabling faster recruitment and improved efficiency. For example, clinical trial management software provides easy access to patient data for research teams and investigators across multiple locations. Moreover, analytics solutions are utilized to obtain insights from R&D data. Virtual oncology can expedite clinical trials, the time-to-market for new therapies and the discovery of genomic biomarkers, propelling its adoption across pharmaceutical companies and research organizations.
- Favorable reimbursement policies and government funding: Most developed countries are implementing favorable reimbursement policies to encourage adoption of cutting-edge virtual oncology technologies. For instance, in the U.S., the Protecting Access to Medicare Act of 2014 allows reimbursements for telehealth in cancer care. Additionally, private insurance companies are offering reimbursements for virtual solutions. Government and private funding for cancer research and precision oncology initiatives also enables uptake of virtual oncology tools. In 2022, the Biden administration proposed US$52 billion over 10 years for the ARPA-H initiative to drive R&D in cancer and other diseases, which will benefit virtual oncology companies.
Virtual Oncology Market Opportunities:
- Increasing investments by key market players: Emerging countries across Asia Pacific, Latin America and Middle East & Africa offer lucrative opportunities for virtual oncology solutions due to improving healthcare infrastructure, rising incidence of cancer and increasing health IT adoption. Increasing investments by key market players in AI platform cancer research. For instance, in November 2021, Sanofi, a pharmaceutical company, announced that they had invested $180 million equity investment into Owkin, a medical AI company, to support drug discovery and development initiatives through AI platform in four types of cancer
- Integration with hospital EMR systems and diagnostics equipment: There are abundant opportunities for virtual oncology solution providers to integrate their platforms with existing hospital EMR systems and diagnostic imaging equipment through APIs and interfaces. This will lead to easy, standardized data transfer between the virtual platform and a hospital’s internal systems for seamless workflows. Philips has already integrated its IntelliSite digital pathology solution with major EMR systems. Partnerships with imaging equipment companies can also allow access to imaging metadata for improving AI algorithms. Integrated platforms will be preferred by hospitals and cancer centers.
- Adoption of telemedicine and virtual care models for cancer: The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated the adoption of telehealth and virtual care models for delivering patient services remotely. Teleoncology models for cancer care management are gaining traction as they ensure continuity of care. Virtual oncology solutions that allow remote consultations, follow-ups, counselling and monitoring of side effects have an opportunity to penetrate the market. Players can develop specialized teleoncology services on their platforms
- Applications of blockchain technology: Blockchain has emerging applications in oncology for managing medical records, enhancing data security, enabling data sharing with privacy for research, streamlining clinical trials, and drug supply chain. Virtual oncology firms can incorporate blockchain to improve data interoperability, transparency and security on their platforms. Some companies are already piloting blockchain-based oncology platforms. For instance, Shivom uses blockchain to offer secure genomic data sharing, which helps researchers gain insights and facilitate personalized treatment. Blockchain integration presents an innovative opportunity for virtual oncology vendors.
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