Medical device major Medtronic plc MDT recently unveiled the latest version of its superDimension navigation system – an image-guiding software system that facilitates tissue extraction from difficult-to-reach areas of the lung – thereby promoting diagnosis of lung diseases.

With the help of a patient’s CT scan, the next-generation superDimension planning software can generate a customized 3D virtual bronchial tree, which will allow physicians to plot a route to reach the pulmonary targets for tissue extraction, while performing a minimally-invasive electromagnetic navigation bronchoscopy (ENB) procedure.

According to management, this latest product launch reflects Medtronic’s attempts to offer advanced care to patients suffering from severe lung conditions.

Interestingly, the superDimension navigation system is used in conjunction with GenCut core biopsy system – a lung tissue biopsy tool that Medtronic launched in July 2015 – to detect lung cancer, using the minimally invasive ENB approach.  We believe the launch of superDimension system’s next-generation version will enable expand Medtronic to bolster its existing footprint in the global billion-dollar oncology market.

Notably, lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death among American citizens. Globally, this deadly disease claims 1.37 million lives each year. However due to lack of sufficient symptoms in most cases, lung cancer often goes undetected, thereby rendering a patient non-curable.

However, if detected early, approximately 85% of lung cancer patients bear a chance of getting cured through surgery.  With the global cancer diagnostics market expected to reach $13.1 billion by 2020, , innovation of biopsy tools capable of detecting lung cancer at an early stage makes for a high-interest area among healthcare providers like Medtronic.

Of late, increased competition has been observed in the global lung cancer therapeutic market, triggered by Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services' (CMS) announcement, that it would cover lung cancer screening for smokers, in early 2015. This, subsequently, is expected to translate into higher number of lung cancer biopsies.

With the global lung cancer therapeutic market expected to grow at a CAGR of 3.8% during 2014-2019, we expect Medtronic to capture a larger share of this huge market, given the company’s huge customer network, latest innovations, competitive leverage capacity and proven expertise in the MedTech industry, going ahead.

Currently, Medtronic has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). Better-ranked medical product stocks are Enzymotec Ltd. ENZY, ICU Medical, Inc. ICUI and NuVasive, Inc. NUVA. All the three stocks sport a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).

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