Global Non-Invasive Prenatal Testing (NIPT) Market Size, Share, Development, Growth and Demand Forecast to 2020 – Industry Insights by Test Type (MaterniT21 PLUS, NIFTY, Harmony, Panorama, PrenaTest, Verifi and Others)

The global non-invasive prenatal testing (NIPT) market was valued at $563.4 million in 2014, and it is expected to grow with a CAGR of 17.6% during the period 2015 - 2020. Among the various test types, the MaterniT21 PLUS accounted for the highest share in global NIPT market in 2014. The NIPT market is experiencing significant growth rate due to favourable macro-economic factors, such as increasing healthcare expenditure. The increasing average maternal age and increasing incidence of chromosome syndrome require early and non-invasive fetal testing procedure. This in turn, increases the usage of NIPT to provide early detection of syndromes.

Prenatal tests are medical tests performed during the pregnancy, to determine the development of fetus. Non-invasive prenatal testing (NIPT) is highly sensitive screening method for detecting specific chromosomal abnormalities, such as  Patau syndrome (Trisomy13), Down syndrome (Trisomy 21), Turner Syndrome (monosomy x), and Edwards syndrome (Trisomy 18), in the developing baby, from as early as week 10 of pregnancy. NIPT market in developing economies, such as Asia-Pacific, Africa, and Latin America, have been growing with a significant pace due to growing awareness for chromosome syndrome, large women population preferring late pregnancy, and increasing acceptance of these tests.

MaterniT21 PLUS  is used to detect fetal chromosomal abnormalities, such as Trisomy 21, Trisomy 18 and Trisomy 13, Trisomy 16 and Trisomy 22; and selected microdeletions, such as 22q (DiGeorge syndrome), 4p (Wolf-Hirschhorn syndrome), 8q (Langer-Giedion syndrome), 11q (Jacobsen syndrome), and 1q36 deletion syndrome. It was the first test introduced in the market for the diagnosis of Trisomy 21, in 2011. The test uses cell-free DNA technology and immensely parallel sequencing, in order to provide patient with unique genetic facts non-invasively. The test provides its results in 5 days from the arrival of blood sample. The MartinT21 PLUS test dominates the global NIPT market in 2014.

The increasing average maternal age and growing demand for early and non-invasive prenatal testing procedure are the factors driving the growth of the market. The maternal age plays a major role in the wide range of birth outcomes, such as birth defects, birth weight, and multiple births. For instance, according to the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the mean age of mother at first birth has increased from 25.8 years in 2012 to 26 years in 2013. In addition, the advancement of developments in assisted reproductive technologies, such as egg donation and in-vitro fertilization (IVF), also increases the incidence of pregnancies within women in the advanced maternal age. The increasing incidence of chromosome syndrome and increasing healthcare expenditure are also fueling the growth of the market. According to CDC, in the U.S. about 6,000 babies are born with Down syndrome, i.e., approximately 1 in every 700 babies is born with the syndrome.

The restraints associated with NIPT market include strict regulatory requirements and ethical hurdles. Some of the ethical concerns associated with NIPT are misuse of NIPT for minor conditions, accessibility and affordability, permissibly legalizing termination of pregnancy due to disability or any other undesired conditions, and others.

The key companies operating in the global non-invasive prenatal testing market include Sequenom Inc., BGI, LifeCodexx AG, Quest Diagnostics Incorporated, Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd., Illumina Inc., Berry Genomics Co., Ltd., Laboratory Corporation of America Holdings and Natera Inc.

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