Broader uses of more personalized medicine will be a major benefit of the growing molecular imaging market, which is predicted to reach $4.75 billion in 2010, according to a new study from Kalorama Information, called Medical Imaging Markets, Volume V: Molecular Imaging.

The growth of the molecular imaging technologies has largely to do with advances in cell biology, biochemical agents, as well as advances in computer analysis. Kalorama believes that annual market growth rates are expected to be nearly 10 percent for PET and 3 to 4 percent for SPECT.

Improvements in detector sensitivity, along with the development of more precise and sensitive signal molecules, will continue to lead to improvements in the various molecular imaging modalities which will increase the likelihood of early diagnosis of disease.

“There are currently novel research areas such as PET targeting Alzheimer’s disease, radiotracers and drug addiction, and molecular breast imaging that hold great promise,” said Melissa Elder, the report’s author. “There’s a positive momentum in the industry to bring to fruition the full potential for utilizing molecular imaging for an expansive range of diagnostics and treatments.”