Radiology (radiation diagnostics)

Types of radiation diagnostics

Radiation diagnostics include:

• X-ray method (traditional radiology, angiography, mammography)
• Computed tomography - CT scan
• Ultrasound Diagnostics - Ultrasound
• Magnetic resonance imaging - MRI
• Thermography
• Radioisotope diagnostics.

Radiation diagnostic methods can be divided into 2 groups depending on the type of energy used to obtain the image: ionizing and non-ionizing.

Ionizing methods: X-ray method, CT (both require irradiation of the patient with X-rays) and radioisotope method (gammaluchi).

Non-ionizing methods: ultrasound, MRI, Thermography.

Artificial intelligence in radiology

Main article: Artificial intelligence in radiology

Contrast injectors and contrast agents

• Contrast Injectors (Global Market)
• Contrast Agents (Global Market)

Chronicle

2024

Global Interventional Radiology Technology Market Size for Cancer Treatment Reached $2.18 Billion for the Year

In 2024, costs in the global market for interventional radiology technologies for the treatment of malignancies reached $2.18 billion. More than 40% came from the North American region. This is stated in a study by Fortune Business Insights, the results of which were released at the end of March 2025.

Interventional radiology involves performing minimally invasive procedures using a variety of imaging techniques. It can be X-ray fluoroscopy, computed tomography (), CT magnetic resonance imaging (), MRI or ultrasound. Interventional radiology allows diagnostic and therapeutic procedures to be performed through small incisions or openings in the body. Compared to open surgery, such operations provide a number of advantages: they are less painful, reduce the risk of infection and speed up the recovery of patients. Interventional radiology is used not only in therapy, but also cancer in the treatment of diseases of the bile ducts, liver, kidneys and urinary system, respiratory system, bones and joints, etc.

The study says that the demand for interventional radiology technologies is growing against the background of the prevalence of various oncological diseases. In particular, radioembolization is in demand - a modern method of combating malignant neoplasms of the liver, covering both primary forms of the disease and metastases of other tumors, including colon cancer, pancreatic cancer, stomach cancer, etc.

The development of the industry is facilitated by increased attention to minimally invasive surgical procedures. Various initiatives by government and non-governmental organizations to improve awareness of the benefits of such interventions encourage the implementation of appropriate systems among health care providers.

The main deterrent is the significant financial costs associated with the acquisition of specialized equipment required for radiofrequency or microwave ablation and visual control therapy. In addition, there is a shortage of qualified professionals to perform minimally invasive cancer procedures. These issues are particularly relevant to developing countries.

Analysts segment the market into radiotherapy, ablation, and embolization solutions. In 2024, the largest share of revenue was provided by the first of these types of products, while the highest growth rates are observed in the field of embolization. The share of systems for ablation is estimated at 20%. In the field of the treatment of malignancies, interventional radiology is most often used in the treatment of liver cancer. Geographically, North America leads, accounting for $0.92 billion of global costs, which corresponds to a 42% share. This is followed by Europe, and the Asia-Pacific region closes the top three, where the largest CAGR is recorded. The leading players on a global scale are:

• Delcath Systems;
• Boston Scientific;
• Merit Medical Systems;
• Terumo;
• Siemens Healthcare;
• AngioDynamics;
• Hologic;
• Teleflex Incorporated.

In 2025, expenditures in the interventional radiology technology market are expected to reach $2.34 billion. Fortune Business Insights analysts believe that in the future, the CAGR will be 8.1%. Thus, by 2032, costs worldwide could exceed $4 billion.^[1]

Approved by GOST "AI Systems in Radiation Diagnostics"

In early October 2024 Russia , GOST R 71673-2024 "Artificial Intelligence Systems in Radiation Diagnostics. Algorithms for the analysis of medical images. Test methods for determination of measurement accuracy. " The document was developed by the State Budgetary Institution health care "Scientific and Practical Clinical Center for Diagnostics and Telemedicine Technologies of the City Health Department" Moscow(GBUZ "NPCC DiT DZM"). More. here

2016: Fighting Drug Couriers

In April 2016, the British Journal of Radiology published an article on the use of X-ray scanners and other equipment to identify drug couriers. Such equipment allows you to see people literally through and through, but drug dealers come up with more and more sophisticated ways to smuggle smuggling on board an aircraft, etc.

To detect prohibited substances, radiologists had to improve their technologies, while not forgetting about ethical standards, because criminals often use women and children to transport and distribute drugs.

A 3D image taken using CT scans shows many large bags of drugs that are hidden in the body of a drug courier.

In many cases, it is difficult to detect drugs transported inside the body using a physical examination or laboratory analysis, says Mesut Bulakci, radiologist at the Istanbul Faculty of Medicine. - At airports or at borders, most often only primary medical examination is carried out, which involves the use of a simple radiograph. In case of suspicion, a person is sent to a specialized hospital, similar to ours, for a more detailed examination.

Between 2010 and 2014, about 50 drug couriers were taken to Istanbul's Haseki Hospital, where Bulkaci researches hidden drug trafficking.

According to Mesut Bulkachi, a survey X-ray or a quick ultrasound examination can easily detect sufficiently large packets of narcotic drugs in the stomach. However, it is much more difficult to identify a small number of small containers transported inside the body.

In addition, criminals are developing new methods of transportation. One of them is the use of capsules with liquid cocaine, which are sewn into various parts of the body.

In June 2015, Colombian police arrested a 22-year-old Honduran citizen who was trying to smuggle 1.5kg of liquid cocaine into breast implants. At the same time, she was infected, so after the arrest, the criminal had to undergo treatment.

According to Mesut Bulkachi, studies have shown that conventional non-contrast computed tomography allows you to detect the transportation of drugs in solid and liquid form in the body with 100 percent success, but the effectiveness of such equipment has not been proven when scanning a person who swallowed a drug that began to dissolve.^[2]

See also

• Telemedicine
• Telemedicine (Russian market)
• Telemedicine (Global Market)
• Remote monitoring of patient health
• Artificial Intelligence in Medicine

Notes