The global market value for non-invasive prenatal testing (NIPT), estimated at USD$433.7m in 2019, is expected to increase at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 0.95%, reaching USD$472.2 by 2028. This increase is driven through the procedures greater safety, sensitivity, and continued adoption within key markets, says GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company.

The company’s latest report, ‘Prenatal Screening – In Vitro Diagnostics Market Analysis and Forecast Model’, reveals that the vast majority of women preferred NIPT, compared to chorionic villus sampling (CVS) and amniocentesis procedures. In the US, NIPT is still the most popular procedure, despite the fact that it is not always covered by private healthcare insurance and Medicaid, nor is it currently recommended as a diagnostic method by professional societies.

Prenatal screening is routinely used in developed countries for the early detection of chromosomal abnormalities, such as Down’s syndrome, and neural tube defects, which are abnormalities of the brain and spine. In many countries, maternal serum screening and ultrasound remain standard-of-care, and if these tests are positive, then prenatal diagnosis is typically performed via either amniocentesis or CVS. However, both amniocentesis and CVS are invasive techniques that have a risk of fetal death and miscarriage.

Dara Lo, Medical Devices Analyst at GlobalData comments: “Non-invasive prenatal screening is a method that determines the risk of genetic abnormalities in the fetus by analyzing the cell-free DNA (cfDNA) of the fetus – similar to shedding skin cells.”

During pregnancy fetal cells are shed and get degraded, which release fetal DNA into the maternal bloodstream via the placenta. NIPT is performed using cfDNA from maternal blood, which is amplified and sequenced.

Lo continues: “Although NIPT has greater sensitivity and safety versus maternal serum screening methods, due to the sequencing process, NIPT is more expensive. This cost presents a major barrier in its widespread clinical adoption. NIPT is not always covered by publicly funded services or private healthcare insurance.”

With Mother’s Day being a time to celebrate motherhood, there are numerous medical procedures performed during pregnancy, which aim to ensure the continued good health of both mother and child.

Lo adds: “NIPT appears a strong alternative to traditional maternal serum markets, and could challenge this market over the forecast period if funding becomes more widespread.”