The South Africa embolotherapy market is expected to grow from US$ 42.09 million in 2021 to US$ 65.47 million by 2028; it is expected to grow at a CAGR of 6.5% from 2022 to 2028.

Factors such as rising cancer cases, rising patient preference for minimally invasive procedures, and increasing incidence of hypertension, obesity, smoking, and alcoholism drive the growth of South Africa embolotherapy market. However, the availability of other alternative therapies and the high cost of embolization agents hamper the market growth.

Embolotherapy is defined as blocking arteries with an object (such as an inserted balloon catheter) to control or prevent untreatable bleeding. This method is used to control bleeding and reduce tumors. It is an endovascular treatment to seal abnormal blood vessels to control bleeding. Embolotherapy plays a major role in managing pelvic tract bleeding, postpartum adjustment, and the management of cervical pregnancy. This therapy helps treat iatrogenic solid organs, vascular injuries, and the non-surgical treatment of organ trauma, including the liver, spleen, and kidneys. Embolotherapy improves enlarged uterine fibroids, preoperative devascularization of tissues and organs, and obliteration of duodenal varices, which requires selecting an embolization agent with the desired permanence of the vascular occlusion.

The five most common types of cancer in South Africa are breast, prostate, cervical, lung, and colorectal. However, of these five cancers, the leading cause of cancer-related death is lung cancer. Even though breast cancer has at least a 25% higher incidence among women, cervical carcinoma was the leading cause of death in 2020. According to National Cancer Registry (NCR), in 2020, ~110,000 new cancer cases were diagnosed in South Africa, with over 56,000 cancer-related deaths, representing a quarter of premature noncommunicable disease-related mortality. This significant cancer burden is predicted to increase in the coming decades, with the incidence of new cancer cases expected to rise to 138,000 and 175,000 by 2030 and 2040, respectively. Cancer-related mortality is predicted to rise to 73,000 and 94,000 during the same period.

Embolization stops bleeding or blocks blood flow to a tumor or abnormal tissue area. It is also used to treat liver and kidney cancer and neuroendocrine tumors. Embolizing agents, including embolic microspheres (beads), are used to restrict the vascular supply of tumors and can be loaded with chemotherapeutic medicines, which elute and diffuse into the tissue.

One of the major future trends in embolotherapy market is the increasing use of liquid embolic agents. Among various types of embolic agents used, liquid embolic agents are gaining increasing attention owing to their advantages in distal infiltration in South Africa, where solid embolic agents cannot reach, enabling more extensive embolization. Liquid formulations have a well-established role in the therapeutic embolization of blood vessels with the widespread use of cyanoacrylate glues, precipitating polymer suspensions, sclerosing agents, and viscous emulsions of oil and chemotherapeutic agents. Further, the emerging market for next-generation liquid embolic aims to address a few shortcomings of the currently used products. There are currently two main liquid agents used for embolization procedures in the clinic in South Africa, such as ethylene-vinyl alcohol (EVA) copolymer solution (such as Onyx and Medtronic) and iodinated poppy seed oil (such as Lipiodol and Guerbet). Lipiodol has been used for many years as an imaging agent and is used off-label in the treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), where it is mixed with aqueous chemotherapy solutions to create a viscous emulsion that aids in temporarily reducing blood flow.

The South Africa embolotherapy market is categorized into product, disease indication, procedure, and end users. Based on product, the South Africa embolotherapy market is segmented into embolic agents and support devices. Embolic agents are further segmented into microsphere, liquid embolics agents, embolic coils, embolic plug systems, detachable balloons, and others. Support devices are further bifurcated into microcatheters and guidewires. The embolic agents segment held a larger market share in 2021 and is anticipated to register a higher CAGR of 6.7% in the market during the forecast period. Embolic agents apply mechanical occlusion to block blood flow in one or more blood vessels or abnormal vascular areas. In interventional radiology, embolization is a common procedure. Embolic agents come in a variety of forms, each with its own set of properties and applications. Various embolic agents are placed using certain ways, such as via catheters into the blood vessels, to inhibit blood flow to a specified area. Embolizing agents such as embolic microspheres (beads) are used to restrict the vascular supply of tumors and can be loaded with chemotherapeutic medicines, which elute and diffuse into the tissue.

Moreover, the increasing use of embolic agents in various interventional radiology procedures and advancements in such agents, such as calibrated microspheres for bland embolization and drug-eluting microspheres, for treating primary or secondary liver disease, are the reasons for the growth of this segment.

The World Health Organization (WHO), National Cancer Registry (NCR) and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) are among the primary and secondary sources referred to while preparing the South Africa embolotherapy market report.