DUBLIN--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

Research and Markets (http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/fh46g5/european_nuclear) has announced the addition of the "European Nuclear Medicine/Radiopharmaceuticals & Stable Isotopes Market Report 2013-2017" report to their offering.

The European stable isotopes market was valued at close to $25.0 million in 2012, and is estimated to grow at a CAGR of more than 8.0% by 2017.

The stable isotopes market was led by two players - Cambridge Isotope Laboratories (CIL) and Sigma Aldrich - in 2012; they jointly contributed more than 50% to the European revenue.

Radiopharmaceuticals are drugs that contain radionuclide-emitting ionizing radiation and are used for disease diagnosis and treatment. They provide better understanding of diseases as they not only give anatomical but also functional information about the organ. Radiopharmaceuticals are also used in the nuclear imaging field as tracers. They are mostly used for diagnosis with the use of gamma cameras for imaging techniques such as in SPECT and PET. Radioisotopes are majorly used in medical applications with more than 90% share. The medical application is being driven by the increasing patient population and new and effective radioisotopes. The most commonly used isotopes for diagnosis are Tc-99m and Tl-201 for SPECT and F-18 for PET.

The radiopharmaceuticals market is broadly classified into two segments, namely, diagnostic and therapeutic; the former dominated with about 83% share in 2012. Radioisotopes in the diagnostic market are categorized as SPECT and PET. Technetium 99m (Tc-99m) dominated the SPECT radioisotope market in 2012, followed by thallium-201(Tl-201), gallium-67 (Ga-67) and iodine-123 (I-123). SPECT is majorly used in the diagnosis of cardiac diseases; it is poised to grow at a CAGR of about 7.0% from 2012 to 2017. The PET radioisotopes market is majorly dominated by fluorine-18 (F-18).

Segments in the therapeutic market include beta emitters, brachytherapy isotopes, and alpha emitters. Quantitative information about alpha emitters is not conclusive, as they have not been commercialized; recent clinical studies have, however, showcased immense potential of alpha isotopes in therapies. Beta emitters contribute the highest to the therapy market, dominated by iodine-131(I-153), which is poised to grow at a CAGR of 4.5% from 2012 to 2017. The market is driven by its applications for thyroid cancer, hyperthyroidism, and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. Significant isotopes in the brachytherapy market are cesium-131(Cs-131), iodine-125 (I-125), palladium-103 (Pd-103), and iridium-192 (Ir-192). Germany is the major market for brachytherapy in terms of market share, followed by France.

The therapy market is predominantly driven by its oncologic applications. Since conventional treatment procedures of cancer, surgery and chemotherapy have significant side effects, radioisotopes are being preferred by medical practitioners due to minimum or no side effects. The radiopharmaceutical therapy market is expected to grow significantly with the launch of the much-desired Alpharadin (Ra-223) in the near future. This isotope has tremendous potential to take up market share of beta emitters and brachytherapy.

Germany accounted for the largest market share of the European nuclear medicine market, followed by France in 2012. Major players in the radiopharmaceuticals market are Covidien, Plc, GE Healthcare, IBA Group, Lantheus Medical Imaging, Inc., Nordion, Inc., and Siemens Healthcare (PETNET).

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Research and Markets: European Nuclear Medicine/Radiopharmaceuticals & Stable Isotopes Market Report 2013-2017