Asia Pacific Clinical Trial Imaging Market

Market Overview

The Asia Pacific Clinical Trial Imaging Market was valued at approximately USD 373 million in 2024 and is projected to reach USD 665 million by 2033, growing at a CAGR of 6.6% during the forecast period (2025–2033).

The clinical trial imaging market encompasses the application of sophisticated imaging technologies including CT, MRI, PET and ultrasound to derive an image of the body from an observation that can be used for a data-driven evaluation of efficacy and safety of therapeutics. Such imaging services will build the quantitative outcomes required to interrogate data on biomarkers, validate outcomes in the clinical context, and add assurance of compliance for regulatory reporting of clinical studies for drugs and devices. Imaging endpoints throughout clinical trial development can assist with decision making in cancer and solid tumors, neurological (brain dysfunctions), cardiology and rare disease trials, as they provide quantitative methods to define response.

Market Dynamics

Market Drivers 

Growth in Clinical Trial Activity in Emerging Asian Economies

The rise in number of clinical trials in the Asia Pacific – but especially in China, India, and South Korea – is a significant driver of demand for clinical trial imaging. There are large patient populations, quicker patient recruitment, and markedly lower costs compared to Western countries, so pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies enjoy conducting and managing trials in these countries.

National government governmental initiatives focused on strengthening clinical research infrastructure and harmonization of regulatory frameworks has enhanced trial activity further. Imaging is typically the most utilized endpoint in clinical trials, providing incorporation of objective endpoints, supporting bio-molecular monitoring/analysis, and clinical trail safety/monitoring.

For example, in March 2024, WuXi Clinical, based in China, expanded its imaging services to support Memorial Sloan Kettering Multicenter Phase III oncology clinical trials to offer standardized FDG PET and CT management services that comply with global regulatory standards. This trend is an indicator of the ongoing/continuing move towards imaging technology’s increasingly reliance on imaging technologies for independent accountability/model testing and deliverance of reliable, standardized, centralized, reproducible data regardless of local site, geography, or region within APAC.

Integration of Artificial Intelligence in Imaging Analysis

AI-enhanced imaging platforms are changing the clinical trial imaging environment in Asia Pacific. Utilizing AI will enable automated, highly-precise analysis of imaging data, with lesser human interpretation errors, and decreasing overall trial timelines.

Biological/clinical developments are still most often evaluated visually by a human viewer, which can be problematic when a large petabyte of imaging data are both common and commonplace (and may vary) when a multicenter study intends exploitation with any standardization whatsoever. For example, in January 2025, India-based AI company DeepTek.ai has partnered with several pharmaceutical sponsors to begin leveraging AI-enhanced image analysis in tuberculosis and COVID-19 drug development studies.

This started with performing automated analysis of chest x-ray images across multiple trial sites within India and Southeast Asia, benefiting greatly from the improved sameness, consistency, and alternate turnaround time in data analysis. As well, AI tools are finally becoming integrated into a large number of oncology and neurology studies, because imaging biomarkers are central to evaluating treatment adequacy when clinical scenarios rely on subtle changes.

As regulatory authorities begin accepting AI process imaging data, the recent necessary degree of regulatory acceptance regarding AI processed imaging data has enhanced the value of AI in terms of credibility in clinical research. The objective, scale and speed with which AI can help a trial sponsor and or CRO is why sponsors and CRO’s in Asia Pacific are primarily seeking these approaches: to support the growth of the animal imaging market in Asia Pacific, and more markedly altering factor of a clinical trial design and conduct process.

Market Restraints

Limited Access to Advanced Imaging Infrastructure in Developing Regions

Although Asia Pacific has several countries that have a modern and sophisticated healthcare system, such as Japan and South Korea, there are still several developing economies and countries in the region, such as Vietnam, Indonesia, and sections of India, that lack high-end imaging technologies (e.g., PET/MRI/CT).

These imaging technologies are also important for undertaking the clinical-trial arm of trials that require state-of-the-art imaging, and the capability to delivery imaging using trained radiologists that maintain standards of imaging techniques. Under-funded public hospitals and clinics, rural and semi-urban settings are not going to have the capability to deliver (or participate) in imaging-intensive trials.

The lack of standardized imaging, inconsistent equipment calibration, lack of DICOM compliant imaging systems (or lack of enough DICOM compliant systems with consistent calibration), and communications infrastructure to transfer images will also hinder centralized imaging collection and imaging analysis. Thus, trial sponsors have no alternative but to concentrate sites and local participants in urban centre hospitals or clinics; this also reduces diversity in patient population, and adds operational complexity.

It also limits access to this technology to those with the financial means to travel to the trial sites, disadvantages developing economies with logistical barriers (and thus raises image acquisition and management costs), and design impacts for multi-country trials across APAC.

Segmental Analysis

By Service Type

In 2024, Operational Imaging Services retained the largest portion of the market share of 34.1% due to demand for efficient image acquisition, data transfers, and coordination across the trial sites. This is important for multicenter trials, where there is a need to be sure that imaging received from sites dispersed across the geography is adequate and standardized.

Operational support from the CRO and sponsors is critical for the management of logistics associated with imaging trials as well as to maintain quality control on the images obtained from the sites. Project & Data Management represented 21.5% in 2024. Project management and data management services are centralized management of imaging data, protocol compliance, tracking data collection, and secure storage of images.

As the amount of imaging data produced in Phase II and III trials increases, the project management services will be essential for data collection, efficient use of resources, and transparency. Read & Analysis Services consisted of 18.3% of the market share in 2024. The need for blinded, independent reads, by trained radiology experts drives the reliance upon read and analysis services.

Centralized image reading ultimately helps decrease bias, increases consistency and reproducibility in interpreting trial endpoints, which is important for regulatory approval. Imaging Software was 13.2% market share in 2024, given the continued use of AI-analytics to improve images, cloud PACS systems for easier images to be stored, shared and analyzed, and de-identification tools to assist with removing PI data from images.

These software platforms increase fast-tracking for imaging trials and speed trials up, they are user friendly, and perform with less human error, and they improve some of the trial waiting time. Trial Design & Consulting Services grew by 7.6% as sponsors looked to use expert advice in developing protocols for trials with imaging endpoints, particularly oncology and CNS trials.

Consulting services help define the modalities, timelines, and assessment criteria. System & Technology Support Services accounted for 5.3% delivery of backend infrastructure, IT integration and real-time technical support for imaging systems that were used during trials. These services are especially vital for trial sites in developing areas of Asia Pacific with limited technical resources.

By End-User

Contract Research Organizations (CROs) occupy fifty-point-five percent of the Asia Pacific clinical trial imaging industry in 2024. They have the best practice domain in centralized image management, interpreting protocols and regulatory submission support, and are leading partners when conducting studies either regionally or globally.

Large Pharmaceutical and Biotechnology Companies have a leading stake share too, as they expand the use of imaging biomarkers into their early-and late-phase trials to assess drug safety and efficacy. Furthermore, pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies manage larger budgets and continue to invest in precision medicine and targeted therapies, utilizing more advanced imaging and responding to increasingly stringent regulatory requirements.

Academic and Research Institutes also have the potential to fill key shares, particularly on early-phase trials and investigator-initiated trials; therefore they are filled with capabilities having access to specialized imaging equipment and are generally focused on leading-edge innovation and therefore have the opportunity to explore. Others include independent imaging core labs and networks, diagnostic networks, etc.

Any organization involved in providing service support, such as: image reading, data archiving, or quality assurance and control, to help support conduct of studies and aid organizations’ scaling beyond local execution across regions in Asia Pacific.

Regional Analysis

North America

North America dominates the market with a share of 38.5% by 2024, on the strength of its advanced imaging infrastructure, steady regulatory frameworks, such as FDA guidelines on imaging-based endpoints, and the high rate of clinical trial activity.

The United States is the worldwide center for clinical trials for both early and late phases that utilize imaging modalities, specifically MRI, CT, and PET imaging, for endpoint-based assessment and patient stratification. In addition, many leading CROs, imaging core labs, and AI focused imaging software companies reside in the region.

Europe

Europe, 27.4% of the market by 2024, is made of parts of the largest markets, Germany, UK, France, and Netherlands, where images are routinely included in clinical trials that large academic research centers and biopharma companies conduct.

The European Medicines Agency (EMA) supports harmonized delivery of imagery-based endpoints, resulting in growth in centralized read services and quality assurance systems. Growth in Europe will also be driven by an aging population and the importance of oncology and neurology trials as the preeminent therapeutic areas.

Asia-Pacific

Asia Pacific is the fastest growing region with an estimated market share of 21.7% in 2024 with a projected CAGR of 7.8% over the forecast period. Key countries driving regional growth include China, Japan, and India; with rising clinical research activity, a growing clinical trial infrastructure, and government support of R&D.

Further fueling growth are the increasing utilization of AI-based imaging solutions and cost advantages, which also can change the center location of global trials with imaging components to Asia Pacific.

Latin America and Middle East & Africa

The Latin America region will hold 6.2% of the total global clinical trial imaging market in 2024. Brazil, Mexico, and Argentina are markets where pharmaceutical companies are conducting imaging supported trials, mostly in the oncology and infectious disease pipeline. Growth driven by improving healthcare systems, government funded clinical trial incentives, and rising collaborations with CROs; but moderate challenges still exist with slow responses to regulatory agencies and lacking research infrastructure.

The Middle East & Africa region holds 6.2% of the market in 2024. The market is steadily growing due to the increasing clinical research investment in those Gulf countries such as UAE and Saudi Arabia and the emerging participation in regional trials by South Africa. Investment made in diagnostic imaging and research facilities is improving but there are still inequities in the access and delivery of imaging equipment especially in low resource settings.

Recent Development

1. January 2025: ICON plc increased its AI portfolio to improve efficiencies, including study startup, document management, resource forecasting, report metrics, and imagery workings.
2. March 2025: ICON plc became the first large CRO to completely integrate Medidata Clinical Data Studio, where imaging, artificial intelligence, and data review are incorporated to increase efficiencies regarding data management and risk evaluation.