Heart Transplantation Cost Composition in Brazil: A Patient-Level Microcosting Analysis and Comparison With International Data.

BACKGROUND: Advanced heart failure (HF) therapies, such as heart transplantation, are resource intensive and costly. In Brazil, only one-fifth of the estimated population need is fulfilled. We examined cost expenditures of heart transplants in a public institution in Brazil. METHODS AND RESULTS: We used microcosting analysis (time-driven activity-based costing) to examine total costs and individual cost components related to the index transplant hospital admission of all consecutive heart transplant recipients at a single center from July 2015 to June 2017. Average total cost for the 27 patients included was US$ 74,341 which exceeds the reimbursement value per patient by 60%. Major cost drivers were hospital structure and personnel, similarly to what is observed in the United States (US) and other developed countries. Total costs for index transplant admission were ∼50% lower than in the US, but approximate to values reported in some European countries. Costs of heart transplantation in Brazil were lower than those reported for developed countries, and higher than national reimbursement values. CONCLUSIONS: Advanced microcosting methodologies represent an important quality contribution to economic studies in health care and may provide insights for transplant-related health care policies in developing countries.

Viability of D283 medulloblastoma cells treated with a histone deacetylase inhibitor combined with bombesin receptor antagonists.

PURPOSE: Medulloblastoma (MB) comprises four distinct molecular subgroups, and survival remains particularly poor in patients with Group 3 tumors. Mutations and copy number variations result in altered epigenetic regulation of gene expression in Group 3 MB. Histone deacetylase inhibitors (HDACi) reduce proliferation, promote cell death and neuronal differentiation, and increase sensitivity to radiation and chemotherapy in experimental MB. Bombesin receptor antagonists potentiate the antiproliferative effects of HDACi in lung cancer cells and show promise as experimental therapies for several human cancers. Here, we examined the viability of D283 cells, which belong to Group 3 MB, treated with an HDACi alone or combined with bombesin receptor antagonists. METHODS: D283 MB cells were treated with different doses of the HDACi sodium butyrate (NaB), the neuromedin B receptor (NMBR) antagonist BIM-23127, the gastrin releasing peptide receptor (GRPR) antagonist RC-3095, or combinations of NaB with each receptor antagonist. Cell viability was examined by cell counting. RESULTS: NaB alone or combined with receptor antagonists reduced cell viability at all doses tested. BIM-23127 alone did not affect cell viability, whereas RC-3095 at an intermediate dose significantly increased cell number. CONCLUSION: Although HDACi are promising agents to inhibit MB growth, the present results provide preliminary evidence that combining HDACi with bombesin receptor antagonists is not an effective strategy to improve the effects of HDACi against MB cells.