Opportunity
Twenty-five million Americans and at least 350 million people worldwide are known to suffer from asthma. For most people, asthma can be controlled with medication. Asthmatics often need multiple medications, such as high amounts of inhaled corticosteroids and long-acting beta-agonists. Medications, known as bronchodilators, such as albuterol, serve to relax the airway muscles and allow the airway to widen so asthmatics can breathe. Yet, for the 5-10% of asthmatics whose condition is severe, breathing is difficult, even with a doctor’s help. For those who don’t respond to traditional therapy, new interventional procedures, such as bronchial thermoplasty, are now being considered to modify the bronchial smooth muscle and related anatomy of the airways.
Americans spend nearly $18 billion on asthma, annually. The majority, of which, is spent on treating the illness through emergency hospital visits and multiple medications, according to the Asthma and Allergy Foundation.[1] Historically, the treatment of asthma has been addressed pharmacologically, through inhaled agents and drugs administered orally and/or intravenously.
As related, ten (10) to fifteen (15) percent of patients suffer from severe persistent asthma. These patients do not respond to treatment. Patients with severe persistent asthma, who do not respond to treatment, and may be candidates for surgical intervention, are significant.
- In the US, those who may be candidates for surgical intervention equates to 2,590,000 to 3,885,000 patients
- Globally, those who may be candidates for surgical intervention equates to 30,000,000 to 40,000,000 patients
These emerging, global patient populations make the emerging Asthma market one of the largest and most significant patient populations in the world whose clinical needs, currently, are unmet.
Boston Scientific, who acquired AsthmatX, Inc. in 2012, estimates the market for their Bronchial Thermoplasty System called Alair at over $1 Billion by 2020.[2]
Given that there are 6-8 million patients with symptomatic severe asthma not well controlled by drug therapy, BSX estimates a $200M market in 2015, growing to over $500M-$1B in 2020. BSX has launched Alair in China, India, Brazil and targets Japan in 2017.
Boston Scientific Trained more than 500 physicians in over 240 centers across 18 countries on the proprietary Alair®Bronchial Thermoplasty System for the treatment of drug-resistant asthma, a high-growth adjacency market we are steadily developing.
