The report on ‘Diagnostics: Unraveling the Future” attempts to understand, qualify and quantify the emerging trends and the impact these trends will have on the Indian diagnostics market in the short to medium term

Indian medical diagnostic industry has emerged as a preferred play in India’s growing healthcare sector, driven by attractive margins and good headroom for growth. The industry was at around US$ 10 billion in FY21 and is expected to grow at around 14 per cent touching US$ 20B by FY26, according to a recent report by Praxis Global Alliance, a global management consulting and advisory services firm.

The report on ‘Diagnostics: Unraveling the Future” attempts to understand, qualify and quantify the emerging trends and the impact these trends will have on the Indian diagnostics market in the short to medium term. It also gives an in-depth insight into the underlying success factors to ride the wave of growth in the Indian diagnostics industry.

Some emerging trends that the report highlights include:

• Changing patient expectations from diagnostic players: pricing, convenience, and reliability are the top three driving factors while selecting a diagnostic service provider
• Newer tests addressing critical and precise clinical needs: Specialised tests: Comprises 15-22 per cent by volumes and 40-45 per cent by value; Molecular pathology poised to grow at 35-40 per cent year on year
• Non-traditional competitors entering the market: Due to attractive margins, players from adjacent service areas of the healthcare ecosystem have entered the diagnostics market and become more competitive. Examples include pharmaceutical companies (e.g., Lupin), hospitals (e.g., Max, Aster DM, Sterling), diagnostic service aggregators, telehealth providers
• Newer patient-centric business models working around industry challenges. New business models around teleradiology and telepathology to improve access, quality, and efficiency of diagnostics; Newer players include computational pathology solution providers and teleradiology service providers
• Logistics is becoming critical in the pursuit of serving customers at their convenience. Best-in-class sample logistics is fast evolving into a core enabler of a successful pathology business
• Use of technology and digital to improve customer experience, support clinical decisions and serve as a backbone of the business. Use of AI systems, especially in image processing across radiology and pathology