Patterns of Medical Care Cost by Service Type for Patients With Recurrent and De Novo Advanced Cancer.

OBJECTIVES: There is limited knowledge about the cost patterns of patients who receive a diagnosis of de novo and recurrent advanced cancers in the United States. METHODS: Data on patients who received a diagnosis of de novo stage IV or recurrent breast, colorectal, or lung cancer between 2000 and 2012 from 3 integrated health systems were used to estimate average annual costs for total, ambulatory, inpatient, medication, and other services during (1) 12 months preceding de novo or recurrent diagnosis (preindex) and (2) diagnosis month through 11 months after (postindex), from the payer perspective. Generalized linear regression models estimated costs adjusting for patient and clinical factors. RESULTS: Patients who developed a recurrence <1 year after their initial cancer diagnosis had significantly higher total costs in the preindex period than those with recurrence ≥1 year after initial diagnosis and those with de novo stage IV disease across all cancers (all P < .05). Patients with de novo stage IV breast and colorectal cancer had significantly higher total costs in the postindex period than patients with cancer recurrent in <1 year and ≥1 year (all P < .05), respectively. Patients in de novo stage IV and those with recurrence in ≥1 year experienced significantly higher postindex costs than the preindex period (all P < .001). CONCLUSIONS: Our findings reveal distinct cost patterns between patients with de novo stage IV, recurrent <1-year, and recurrent ≥1-year cancer, suggesting unique care trajectories that may influence resource use and planning. Future cost studies among patients with advanced cancer should account for de novo versus recurrent diagnoses and timing of recurrence to obtain estimates that accurately reflect these care pattern complexities.

Economic burden of chemotherapy-treated recurrent and/or metastatic squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck in France: real-world data from the permanent sample of national health insurance beneficiaries.

Aims: Overall survival (OS) of patients with recurrent or metastatic (R/M) squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck (SCCHN) is extremely poor. New therapeutic options emerge but need to establish their economic value. The objective was to describe the direct and related costs of R/M SCCHN in France. Materials and methods: We selected all adult patients treated with chemotherapy for R/M SCCHN between 1 January 2009 and 31 December 2014 from the permanent sample of the French national health insurance database (EGB). Data were analyzed from the index date (first chemotherapy) until patients' death or 31 December 2015. "Treatment period" and "end-of-life" (EoL) (from last chemotherapy until death) were distinguished. Costs included all hospitalizations for SCCHN and ambulatory care. Costs of hospitalized and non-hospitalized adverse events (AEs) were estimated. Results: Among 267 patients identified, 85% were men, 44% had metastases at the index date and the mean age was 62.0 years (±9.9). The most common tumor location was oropharynx (29%) but 39% of patients had multiple locations. Median OS was 9.3 (95% CI: 7.9-11.8) months for the overall population. The average total direct cost per patient was €49,954, broken down into €32,908 (95% CI: 29,525-36,290) for hospitalizations and €17,047 (14,941-19,152) for ambulatory care. Main cost drivers were drug acquisition and administration (€14,538) during the treatment period (209 days on average) and palliative care (€3,750) during the EoL period (125 days). Regarding related costs, around 12% of patients received disability pensions (€1,397 per patient [624-2,171]) and sick leave payments (€1,592 [888-2,297]). "Metabolism and nutrition disorders" and "Infections and infestations" were the most expensive hospitalized AEs (€1,513 and €1,180 per patient, respectively). Febrile neutropenia was the most expensive non-hospitalized AE (€766 per patient). Conclusions: This analysis of real-world data confirms the poor prognosis of patients with R/M SCCHN and provides cost data for future economic evaluations.

Cost Effectiveness of Cytoreductive Surgery and Hyperthermic Intraperitoneal Chemotherapy for Management of Colorectal Peritoneal Carcinomatosis.

BACKGROUND: Peritoneal carcinomatosis from colorectal cancer is a stage 4 disease for which palliative chemotherapy has traditionally been considered the mainstay of treatment. Since the development of cytoreductive surgery (CRS) and hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy (HIPEC) by Sugarbaker, this combined method treatment has resulted in improved survival outcomes with acceptable morbidity for selected patients with peritoneal carcinomatosis. This study examined the cost effectiveness of CRS and HIPEC compared with palliative chemotherapy for patients with peritoneal carcinomatosis from colorectal cancer within the context of the Singaporean health care system. METHODS: A retrospective review of patients with peritoneal carcinomatosis from histologically proven colorectal cancer treated at the National Cancer Centre Singapore (NCCS) was conducted. RESULTS: The average cost of CRS and HIPEC per patient was S$83,680.26, and the median overall survival period was 47 months. The calculated cost per life year attained for a patient who underwent CRS and HIPEC was S$21,365.19 per life year. In comparison, the average cost of palliative chemotherapy was S$44,478.87, with a median overall survival of 9 months, and the calculated cost per life year attained for a patient in this treatment group was S$59,305.16 per life year. CONCLUSION: The findings show that CRS and HIPEC results in prolonged survival for selected patients with colorectal peritoneal carcinomatosis and a lower cost per life year attained than for the traditionally used palliative chemotherapy. It should logically be the preferred treatment of choice for selected patients with colorectal peritoneal metastasis.

Impacts of Early Guideline-Directed 21-Gene Recurrence Score Testing on Adjuvant Therapy Decision Making.

PURPOSE: The 21-gene recurrence score (RS) assay is used to help formulate adjuvant chemotherapy recommendations for patients with estrogen receptor-positive, early-stage breast cancer. Most frequently, medical oncologists order RS after surgery. Results take an additional 2 weeks to return, which can delay decision making. We conducted a prospective quality-improvement project to assess the impact of early guideline-directed RS ordering by surgeons before the first visit with a medical oncologist on adjuvant therapy decision making. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Surgical oncologists ordered RS testing following National Comprehensive Cancer Network guidelines at time of diagnosis or at time of surgery between July 1, 2015 and December 31, 2015. We measured the testing rate of patients eligible for RS, time to chemotherapy decisions, rates of chemotherapy use, accrual to RS-based clinical trials, cost, and physician acceptance of the policy and compared the results to patients who met eligibility criteria for early guideline-directed testing during the 6 months before the project. RESULTS: Ninety patients met eligibility criteria during the testing period. RS was ordered for 91% of patients in the early testing group compared with 76% of historical controls ( P < .001). Median time to chemotherapy decision was significantly shorter in the early testing group (20 days; 95% CI, 17 to 23 days) compared with historical controls (32 days; 95% CI, 29 to 35 days; P < .001). There were no significant differences in time to chemotherapy initiation, chemotherapy use, RS-based trial enrollment, or calculated costs between the groups. CONCLUSION: Early guideline-directed RS testing in selected patients is an effective way to shorten time to treatment decisions.

Inadvertently boarding a pirate ship: disease progression in a paediatric patient with relapsed metastatic Ewing sarcoma receiving treatment at a centre for alternative therapy in Mexico.

Complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) therapies are commonly incorporated into the care of patients with paediatric cancer. Many modalities are safe and effective during cancer treatment and have proved beneficial for symptom relief and quality of life. However, situations where alternative therapy is provided without allopathic medical care supportive care resources can pose a safety risk to patients. This report describes the case of a 16-year-old Chinese girl with metastatic Ewing sarcoma who sought treatment with alternative treatment in Mexico. When her disease progressed with an ensuing significant loss of function, the centre personnel were unable to respond to her acute deterioration or provide necessary medical care. This resulted in her being stranded in a foreign country paralysed, isolated, and with large unanticipated financial expenditures.

The ROAM/EORTC-1308 trial: Radiation versus Observation following surgical resection of Atypical Meningioma: study protocol for a randomised controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: Atypical meningiomas are an intermediate grade brain tumour with a recurrence rate of 39-58 %. It is not known whether early adjuvant radiotherapy reduces the risk of tumour recurrence and whether the potential side-effects are justified. An alternative management strategy is to perform active monitoring with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and to treat at recurrence. There are no randomised controlled trials comparing these two approaches. METHODS/DESIGN: A total of 190 patients will be recruited from neurosurgical/neuro-oncology centres across the United Kingdom, Ireland and mainland Europe. Adult patients undergoing gross total resection of intracranial atypical meningioma are eligible. Patients with multiple meningioma, optic nerve sheath meningioma, previous intracranial tumour, previous cranial radiotherapy and neurofibromatosis will be excluded. Informed consent will be obtained from patients. This is a two-stage trial (both stages will run in parallel): Stage 1 (qualitative study) is designed to maximise patient and clinician acceptability, thereby optimising recruitment and retention. Patients wishing to continue will proceed to randomisation. Stage 2 (randomisation) patients will be randomised to receive either early adjuvant radiotherapy for 6 weeks (60 Gy in 30 fractions) or active monitoring. The primary outcome measure is time to MRI evidence of tumour recurrence (progression-free survival (PFS)). Secondary outcome measures include assessing the toxicity of the radiotherapy, the quality of life, neurocognitive function, time to second line treatment, time to death (overall survival (OS)) and incremental cost per quality-adjusted life year (QALY) gained. DISCUSSION: ROAM/EORTC-1308 is the first multi-centre randomised controlled trial designed to determine whether early adjuvant radiotherapy reduces the risk of tumour recurrence following complete surgical resection of atypical meningioma. The results of this study will be used to inform current neurosurgery and neuro-oncology practice worldwide. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ISRCTN71502099 on 19 May 2014.

Measuring the population impact of introducing stereotactic ablative radiotherapy for stage I non-small cell lung cancer in Canada.

BACKGROUND: The Cancer Risk Management Model (CRMM) was used to estimate the health and economic impact of introducing stereotactic ablative radiotherapy (SABR) for stage I non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) in Canada. METHODS: The CRMM uses Monte Carlo microsimulation representative of all Canadians. Lung cancer outputs were previously validated internally (Statistics Canada) and externally (Canadian Cancer Registry). We updated costs using the Ontario schedule of fees and benefits or the consumer price index to calculate 2013 Canadian dollars, discounted at a 3% rate. The reference model assumed that for stage I NSCLC, 75% of patients undergo surgery (lobectomy, sublobar resection, or pneumonectomy), 12.5% undergo radiotherapy (RT), and 12.5% undergo best supportive care (BSC). SABR was introduced in 2008 as an alternative to sublobar resection, RT, and BSC at rates reflective of the literature. Incremental cost effectiveness ratios (ICERs) were calculated; a willingness-to-pay threshold of $100,000 (all amounts are in Canadian dollars) per quality-adjusted life-year (QALY) was used from the health care payer perspective. RESULTS: The total cost for 25,085 new cases of lung cancer in 2013 was calculated to be $608,002,599. Mean upfront costs for the 4,318 stage I cases were $7,646.98 for RT, $8,815.55 for SABR, $12,161.17 for sublobar resection, $16,266.12 for lobectomy, $22,940.59 for pneumonectomy, and $14,582.87 for BSC. SABR dominated (higher QALY, lower cost) RT, sublobar resection, and BSC. RT had lower initial costs than SABR that were offset by subsequent costs associated with recurrence. Lobectomy was cost effective when compared with SABR, with an ICER of $55,909.06. CONCLUSION: The use of SABR for NSCLC in Canada is projected to result in significant cost savings and survival gains.

Evaluation of the cost of CA-125 measurement, physical exam, and imaging in the diagnosis of recurrent ovarian cancer.

OBJECTIVE: Ovarian cancer accounts for 50% of deaths from gynecologic malignancies. We sought to determine the cost of common methods of surveillance of women with ovarian cancer in first clinical remission. The current standard for post treatment surveillance is the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) guidelines. METHODS: We retrospectively determined how recurrence was initially detected at our institution and a cost model was created and applied to the United States population to calculate surveillance costs using the Surveillance Epidemiology & End Results (SEER) database. RESULTS: 57% (n=60) of first recurrences were identified by increasing CA 125 level. Routine office visit identified 27% (n=29) of recurrences, and 15% (n=16) were diagnosed initially with CT scan. In 5% (5/105), CT abnormality was the only finding. 95% (100/105) of patients had either elevated CA 125 or office visit findings at time of recurrence. Of the 22,000 women diagnosed with ovarian cancer yearly, 60% (n=13,266) will have advanced disease and are likely to recur. The surveillance cost for this population for 2 years using our model is $32,500,000 using NCCN guidelines and $58,000,000 if one CT scan is obtained. CONCLUSIONS: Our data suggests that following NCCN guidelines will detect 95% of recurrences. An additional $26 million will be needed to identify the 5% of women with recurrence seen on CT only. Post treatment surveillance of ovarian cancer patients contributes significantly to health care costs. Use of CT scan to follow these patients largely increases cost with only a small increase in recurrence detection.

Budgetary impact of treatment with adjuvant imatinib for 1 year following surgical resection of Kit-positive localized gastrointestinal stromal tumors.

BACKGROUND: Imatinib mesylate, an orally administered kinase inhibitor that targets the Kit (CD117) protein, currently has 10 approved indications including treatment of chronic myelogenous leukemia and metastatic gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GIST). Treatment with adjuvant imatinib following surgical resection of localized Kit-positive GIST, the most recent FDA-approved indication (December 2008), has been shown to significantly improve recurrence-free survival (RFS) compared with surgical resection alone. Although adjuvant imatinib has proven effective in clinical trials, it is important to consider the economic impact to health plans of introducing imatinib in accordance with its new labeled indication. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the budgetary impact over a 3-year time horizon of treating patients with localized Kit-positive GIST with 1 year of adjuvant imatinib following surgical resection. METHODS: A Markov model was developed to predict patients' transitions across health states defined by initial treatment (surgical resection followed by adjuvant imatinib 400 milligrams [mg] daily versus surgical resection alone), recurrence, and progression. Treatments for a first recurrence were (a) imatinib 400 mg daily for recurrences following resection only or after completion of 1 year of treatment with imatinib 400 mg daily and (b) imatinib 800 mg daily for recurrence during active treatment with imatinib 400 mg daily. Treatments for further progression were imatinib 800 mg daily, sunitinib, or best supportive care (BSC) following imatinib 400 mg per day, and sunitinib or BSC following imatinib 800 mg daily. Recurrence rates were derived from the American College of Surgeons Oncology Group (ACOSOG) Z9001 clinical trial, which compared 1 year of adjuvant imatinib following surgical resection with surgical resection only. The total number of patients with localized and surgically resected GIST (incidence rate of 0.36 per 100,000) was estimated from epidemiologic studies of GIST. Uptake of treatment with imatinib was estimated from unpublished data from qualitative market research funded by the study sponsor. The uptake rate assumptions reflected both (a) the percentage of patients with Kitpositive disease and (b) the percentage of clinically eligible patients who would use imatinib. Costs were estimated by combining unit costs from published sources with expected resource utilization based on the clinical trial publication and National Comprehensive Cancer Network guidelines on the treatment of patients with GIST. To obtain estimates of the budgetary impact, we compared estimated health care costs with versus without adjuvant imatinib, where health care costs with imatinib reflected the costs of treatment minus cost offsets associated with delayed or avoided recurrence or progression. All "with" scenarios assumed no additional uses other than surgically resected localized Kit-positive GIST (i.e., no change in off-label use of imatinib). The budgetary impact was estimated for the first 3 years after the introduction of adjuvant imatinib in accordance with its new labeled indication in a hypothetical plan population of 10 million persons. Results were calculated both as total budgetary impact and as per member per month (PMPM) cost in 2009 dollars. Sensitivity analyses were performed to test the robustness of model results to changes in parameter estimates. RESULTS: The model predicted 36 incident resected GIST cases per year in a health plan of 10 million members. The estimated counts of cases treated with adjuvant imatinib were 10.8, 16.2, and 21.6 in the first, second, and third years after introduction, respectively, with the annual increases attributable to changes in the proportion of patients with resected GIST assumed to use imatinib (30% in year 1, rising to 45% in year 2 and 60% in year 3). The model predicted that treatment of these cases with imatinib will increase pharmacy costs by an additional $505,144 in the first year, $757,717 in the second year, and $1,010,289 in the third year. Increased resource use associated with monitoring patients during and after treatment with adjuvant imatinib would cost an additional $21,564, $38,145, and $56,605 in the first, second, and third years, respectively. Recurrence would be avoided or delayed in 7 patients over the 3-year period. Avoided or delayed recurrences would result in cost offsets of $61,583 in the first year, $156,702 in the second year, and $233,849 in the third year. The net budgetary impact was estimated to be $465,126 in the first year (less than $0.01 PMPM), $639,159 in the second year ($0.01 PMPM), and $833,044 in the third year ($0.01 PMPM). Results of sensitivity analyses indicated that the budgetary impact in the third year is most sensitive to changes in the price of adjuvant imatinib and recurrence rates. CONCLUSIONS: The model predicted that the introduction of adjuvant imatinib for treatment of surgically resected, localized, Kit-positive GIST will lead to a net budgetary impact of $0.01 PMPM in the third year after introduction assuming change in use only in accordance with the new labeled indication. Approximately 11.7%-21.9% of the cost of adjuvant imatinib is offset by the reduction in costs associated with GIST recurrence.

Holmium:YAG laser vaporization of recurrent papillary tumours of the bladder under local anaesthesia.

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate holmium:YAG laser vaporization of papillary tumours of the bladder, focusing on surgical technique, patients' satisfaction, complications and cost-effectiveness when using the technique under local anaesthesia as an outpatient procedure. PATIENTS AND METHODS: In all, 52 consecutive patients with recurrent papillary tumours of the bladder were scheduled for holmium:YAG laser vaporization under local anaesthesia using a flexible cystoscope. The number of papillomas and total operative duration was recorded. Patients and surgeons were asked to complete a questionnaire about the procedure. RESULTS: In all, 197 papillomas were successfully vaporized in 88 operations, with a median operative duration of 15 min (5 min per papilloma) and no patient needed treatment under general anaesthesia. Most patients (86%) had no pain (as reported during standard cystoscopy) and none of the procedures was stopped because of pain. All patients would undergo the treatment again, compared with a standard transurethral resection of bladder tumour. The five surgeons rated the procedure as easy in most patients (78%) and difficult in a few (6%). The total cost for the outpatient procedure was less than that for standard treatment. CONCLUSION: This study clearly indicates that holmium:YAG laser vaporization of superficial bladder tumours is feasible, easy and fast, with a high degree of patient satisfaction, and it seems to be an attractive alternative to standard treatment. The procedure has some clear positive socio-economic perspectives in both the short- and long-term.

The cost of bladder tumour treatment and follow-up.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the costs of bladder tumour treatment and follow-up. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The incidence of bladder tumours, both new and recurrences, and the cost of bladder tumour treatments with curative intent were registered during a 4-year period (1994-97). RESULTS: The incidence of new tumours varied from year to year, in contrast to the number of recurrent tumours, which remained remarkably stable. The total cost of bladder cancer diagnosis, treatment and follow-up was almost 7,000,000 SEK per year (2,800,000 SEK per 100,000 inhabitants per year). The number of therapeutic events per year remained stable at 256 +/- 17 (102 per 100,000 inhabitants per year). Cystectomies were responsible for 34% of the expenditure and transurethral procedures for 40%. Follow-up cystoscopies accounted for only 13% of the total cost. One-third of the routine follow-up cystoscopies resulted in a therapeutic procedure. The cost of transurethral resections and extirpations was approximately five times higher when performed with the patient hospitalized compared to when performed as day-care surgery. CONCLUSIONS: A reduction in the number of follow-up cystoscopies will only produce marginal economic savings. Further savings could be made if more transurethral resections and extirpations/fulgurations were performed on an outpatient basis. Another important goal is to reduce the median cost per cystectomy.