Each year, more than 12 million new cases of cancer are diagnosed worldwide and as many as 8 million cancer sufferers die. Cancer is the second leading cause of death in the US and other developed countries, accounting for nearly one of every four deaths. It is estimated that the number of new cases diagnosed each year will rise to 15 million by 2020 with a corresponding increase in annual cancer deaths from 8 million today to 10 million by 2020.
Biosceptre’s current product development programs address large market opportunities comprising the following diagnostics and immunotherapeutics for cancer:

Tissue based Immunohistochemistry (IHC) Market
IHC diagnostic test demand is fueled by an aging population and new improved technologies, which are increasing usage of cancer diagnostics. The histopathology market is estimated at ?US$1 billion and it is forecast that the IHC market will grow 11% annually.

Based on the estimated number of biopsy procedures currently carried out in the US alone, an IHC test for prostate, breast, colorectal and skin cancers could each potentially generate well in excess of US$150 million in sales revenue.

Topical Skin Cancer Therapeutic
Skin cancer is the most common form of cancer, accounting for at least half of all cancers. The exact number of people who develop basal and squamous cell skin cancers each year in the US is not known for certain. Statistics of most other cancers are known because they are reported to cancer registries, but basal and squamous cell skin cancers are not reported.

It is estimated that there are more than 1 million basal and squamous cell skin cancers diagnosed each year in the US alone. Most of these (about 800,000 to 900,000) are basal cell cancers. Squamous cell cancers occur less often – around 200,000 to 300,000 per year. The leading drug currently available to treat basal cell carcinoma generates sales of approximately US$350 million.

Systemic Therapeutics
Global sales of cancer drugs are forecast to grow 12 to 15% annually and exceed US$75 billion by 2012. This is more than twice the growth rate of the overall pharmaceutical market.

Antibody-based cancer treatments (such as those being developed by Biosceptre) have experienced phenomenal growth. These drugs are predicted to represent about one-half of the total cancer market over the next three to five years. 

Oncology is forecast to become the number one drug market by value in 2010. Cancer drugs are also very profitable for pharmaceutical companies.