C-Reactive Protein Testing Market Size, Share & Trends Analysis Report By Assay Type, By Detection Range, By Disease Area (Cancer, Endometriosis, Cardiovascular Diseases), By End Use, And Segment Forecasts, 2020 - 2027

Industry Insights

The global C-reactive protein testing market size was estimated at USD 1.7 billion in 2019 and is expected to register a CAGR of 1.3% over the forecast period. Extensive research conducted on various applications of the C-reactive protein (CRP) testingis one of the major factors driving the market. The presence of public and private agencies that grant funds to accelerate research activities in this space is anticipated to positively impact the adoption rate of these testing methods.

The development of novel techniques for analyzing the concentration of C-reactive protein by researchers, provides high-value avenues for market growth. For instance, a study published in November 2019 by Chih-Shen, Chuang, et al., developed a portable smartphone-based diffusometric immunoassay for the detection of C-reactive protein concentration. This immunoassay is based on the fluorescence correlation spectrometry that measures various protein concentrations in a sample.

Point-of-care (POC) based testing methods have gained immense popularity in recent years as these tests provide rapid and accurate results in minimal time. These tests can also be easily used in a wide range of healthcare settings. For instance, Abbott's Afinion POC and NycoCard CRP testing methods are suitable for hospital use, such as in the intensive care unit, emergency room, rheumatology, oncology, hematology, and pediatric units of hospitals as well as in primary care.

The initiatives undertaken by government bodies to promote the use of POC C-reactive protein testing in healthcare settings are anticipated to foster market growth. The new Standard Reference Material of the National Institute of Standards and Technology has enhanced the accuracy of the C-reactive protein testing to determine the risk of cardiovascular disease. Also, the National Institute of Health and Care Excellence has incorporated these testing methods in its guidelines for pneumonia diagnosis.

The approvals of C-reactive protein testing for the identification of bacterial and non-bacterial infections is expected to positively influence market growth. For instance, in April 2019, the Foundation for Innovative New Diagnostics and SD Biosensor, Inc. announced an evaluation of their STANDARD Q Malaria/CRP Duo testing method to support local regulatory submissions post CE approval. The test allows for simultaneous detection of elevated C-reactive protein levels and malaria infections to support the clinician decision-making process.

Assay Type Insights

The immunoturbidimetric assays segment dominated the C-reactive protein testing market in terms of revenue share in 2019 and is expected to retain its dominance throughout the forecast period. The wide availability of advanced C-reactive protein determining systems, such as immunoturbidimetric technique-based POC devices and latex-enhanced, high sensitivity systems attributes to its large revenue share.

For instance, the Aidian’s QuikRead go CRP, is a simple and rapid immunoturbidimetric technique-based POC testing method that determines the protein concentration to support the diagnosis of infectious disease. Also, this assay type offers several advantages including high speed, ease of automation, and good precision, which increases the demand in this segment. Continuous research related to immunoturbidimetric assays opens up new avenues for segment progression.

Chemiluminescence immunoassays are anticipated to witness a significant growth rate, following immunoturbidimetric assays, owing to several benefits offered by these assays. For instance, the high sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) testing methods that are based on this assay type are considered to be highly accurate and reliable. These assays are found to be useful in improving the risk assessment of cardiovascular disorders and the prognosis of inflammatory bowel diseases, which increases its adoption rate.

Detection Range Insights

The hs-CRP test type captured the maximum revenue share in 2019 and is expected to maintain its dominance throughout the forecast period owing to its high sensitivity than a standard testing method. It accurately measures the low levels of C-reactive protein to identify inflammation levels. These factors make it more preferable while determining the risk of developing cardiovascular diseases in healthy patients.

Furthermore, constant research studies related to this test are expected to expand its applications in clinical diagnostics, subsequently driving the segment revenue generation. Several research studies have shown that hs-CRP assays are being increasingly used as a marker for various medical conditions, such as hypertension, malaria, cancer, and bone diseases, thereby boosting the implementation of this segment over the other segments.

Cardiac C-reactive protein segment witnesses a lower penetration in the current market owing to its limited application among end-users. These are only used in determining the risk of cardiovascular disorders in patients. However, ongoing investigations on these specific markers and increasing prevalence of cardiovascular diseases are expected to propel the segment growth to some extent.

Disease Type Insights

Cardiovascular Diseases (CVD) have dominated the market in terms of revenue generation. The rising incidence of CVD across the globe is one of the factors that has driven the demand for C-reactive protein testing. According to the American Heart Association 2019 data, there are over 356,000 out-of-hospital cardiac arrests in U.S. every year, among which 90% of cases are fatal. This high incidence rate encourages clinicians to implement the C-reactive protein testing on a large scale.

Moreover, the increase in cases of CVD prompts researchers to conduct numerous investigational studies for examining the role of testing C-reactive protein in CVD, thereby supplementing the segment revenue generation. For instance, a research study by Wei Wang published in August 2019, demonstrated that the ratio of hs-CRP and prealbumin acts as an early biomarker to predict in-hospital major adverse cardiac events in patients.

The use of CRP-based test for cancer detection is anticipated to grow at significant rate during the forecast period. This is due to the presence of several public organizations, such as the American Joint Committee on Cancer, that support research studies pertaining to C-reactive protein testing for cancer diagnosis. The American Joint Committee on Cancer has established the guidelines to support tumor staging in research studies related to the role of C-reactive protein in buccal cancer.

End-use Insights

Clinics held the maximum revenue share in the 2019 and are projected to witness the fastest growth rate owing to the high usage of POC C-reactive protein testing in primary care settings. The application of these tests in clinics is recognized to be significantly beneficial in terms of commercial viability, as it reduces the overall workload as well as costs, while maintaining the result effectiveness for the patients.

Moreover, support from government bodies in this area is anticipated to optimize the POC based C-reactive protein testing in primary care. For instance, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence has recommended the usage of POC C-reactive protein testing in primary care to aid the diagnosis and management of pneumonia in adults in U.K.

Following clinics, hospitals are estimated as the second-largest end-users of this market. The identification of low-sensitivity C-reactive protein during hospital admission is valuable for forecasting the patient’s outcome. This test serves as a useful triage marker to assess the risk of future death. Hence, a rise in the number of hospital admissions with an increase in the CVD and cancer incidence rate drives the uptake of these tests within hospital settings.

Regional Insights

North America accounted for the largest revenue share in 2019 owing to the presence of a well-established reimbursement scenario in this region. For instance, the BlueCross BlueShield of North Carolina that provides reimbursement for general inflammation testing includes coverage for measurement of CRP in the diagnosis of inflammatory disorders.

Ongoing studies in the South East Asian countries have proven the role of C-reactive protein in the identification of bacterial versus non-bacterial infections and can be used as a suitable biomarker in guiding antibiotic prescriptions. Thus, a combination of the malaria-CRP test is considered as a viable alternative to a malaria-only test in the low-malaria transmission countries of South East Asia. The combination test minimizes the overall expenditure by facilitating the identification of disease and antibiotic prescriptions process simultaneously.

Furthermore, in the past years, Asian countries witnessed continuous innovations related to C-reactive protein testing in the past years. For instance, the researchers from the University of Hong Kong developed a real-time ultra-flexible sensor that is incorporated into a medical catheter for direct CRP sensing. This ultra-thin sensor accelerated the testing of inflammation by 30 times. These factors are anticipated to drive the Asia Pacific market with the fastest growth rate in the coming years.

C-reactive Protein Testing Market Share Insights

Some prominent participants in the market include Thermo Fisher Scientific, Inc.; F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd.; Danaher; Quest Diagnostics Incorporated; Siemens; Abbott Laboratories; Laboratory Corporation of America Holdings; Merck KGaA; Abaxis, Inc.; Ortho Clinical Diagnostics; Getein Biotech, Inc.; HORIBA, Ltd.; Randox Laboratories Ltd.; BODITECH MED INC.; and Aidian.

Key market participants are making significant investments to expand their product portfolio in the market space and maintain a competitive edge in the space. They are also engaged in partnerships and collaboration with companies and other key stakeholders such as funding and research bodies to support the uptake of point-of-care C-reactive protein testing.

For instance, in May 2019, Japan Radio Company Ltd. collaborated with Ueda Japan Radio Company for the introduction of the first Surface Acoustic Wave based C-reactive protein testing kit with increased portability for a point-of-care test, XtalSens CRP test. The new product helps to minimize the overall expenditure by eliminating the need for highly skilled personnel and preventing the specimen collect back and inspection requests to the central laboratories.

Report Scope

Segments Covered in the Report

This report forecasts revenue growth at global, regional, and country levels and provides an analysis of the latest industry trends in each of the sub-segments from 2016 to 2027. For the purpose of this study, Grand View Research has segmented the global C-reactive protein testing market report on the basis of assay type, detection range, disease area, end use, and region:

• Assay Type Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2016 - 2027)

  • Immunoturbidimetric Assay

  • ELISA

    • Clinical

    • Nonclinical

  • Chemiluminescence Immunoassay

  • Others

• Detection Range Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2016 - 2027)

  • hs-CRP

  • Conventional CRP

  • cCRP

• Disease Area Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2016 - 2027)

  • Cardiovascular Diseases

  • Cancer

  • Rheumatoid Arthritis

  • Inflammatory Bowel Disease

  • Endometriosis

  • Lupus

  • Others

• End-use Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2016 - 2027)

  • Clinics

    • By Entity

      • Physician Offices

      • Small Clinics

      • Others

    • By Settings

      • Urban Setting

      • Rural Setting

  • Hospitals

  • Urban Setting

  • Rural Setting

  • Laboratories

    • Urban Setting

    • Rural Setting

  • Assisted Living Healthcare Facilities

    • Urban Setting

    • Rural Setting

  • Home

  • Others

• Regional Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2016 - 2027)

  • North America

    • U.S.

    • Canada

  • Europe

    • Germany

    • U.K.

  • Asia Pacific

    • China

    • Japan

  • Latin America

    • Brazil

  • Middle East and Africa (MEA)

    • South Africa