The women’s mammography segment is poised for a major new phase of growth fueled by the availability of new technology coming out of the computer and digital areas and the higher interest of individual patients and general healthcare consumers to take charge of their own health status. Continuous improvements in technology are resulting in a growing number of new imaging diagnostic tests that combine high levels of accuracy with rapid, easy-to-use product formats. Digital mammography is driving more screening programs. The emphasis in this report is on those companies and products that are

actively developing and marketing clinical laboratory instrumentation and reagents and supplies for performing diagnostic tests on conditions specifically related to women’s health. This study concentrates on the mammography market segment in large worldwide markets such as the U.S., Japan and Europe. Certain areas that are not covered include what is generally characterized as digital imaging techniques instruments and reagents, PACS or other data storage methods, or other medical imaging technologies, although many of the instruments, reagents and techniques in the mammography market segment are intimately associated with these broader areas.

Specialty areas in medical imaging are touched upon, since these segments are frequently a part of the overall analytical focus of companies marketing general mammography equipment. However, no effort is made to quantify the size of this broader market.