Following NeuroPace’s announcement that its first patient has been implanted with its responsive neurostimulation (RNS) system during the ongoing NAUTILUS clinical trials;

Aidan Robertson, Medical Analyst at GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company, offers his view:

“As the prevalence of epilepsy is increasing, there will be growing demand for non-medicated solutions as the perception of continuous drug use has become ill-favored and NeuroPace’s RNS system may prove to be an essential option to treating this condition at the source.

“While this technology is still far from being introduced to the market for idiopathic generalised epilepsy (IGE), it is still the only FDA-approved brain-responsive neurostimulation system on the market. As NeuroPace begins to expand the indications that its RNS system can treat, it may become a larger player in the neuromodulation devices market. The neuromodulation devices market value was $6.8 billion in 2021 and is expected to reach $10.7 billion by 2030, according to GlobalData.

“With the continued growth of the neuromodulators market, GlobalData expects NeuroPace’s growth to match accordingly. Unfortunately, a major barrier to the adoption of this technology is the cost. NeuroPace’s RNS system is currently priced between $35,000 to $40,000, which is not accessible to the average patient. If NeuroPace can drive down the price to a more manageable figure, perhaps we will see a widespread use of the product in the future. At the moment, it would only apply to those with the available means to purchase it.”