Uncovering the Cost of Red Blood Cell (RBC) and Platelet (PLT) Transfusions in Africa, Asia, Oceania, and the Americas and Exploring Related Implications in a Trial Example
Author(s)
Alexa Molinari, PharmD1, Athanasios Zomas, MD2, Hüseyin Emre Selvi, MBA3, Eunji Heo, BPharm4, Inbal Weiss, MSc5, Paulo Vitor dos Santos Souza, MSc6, Lorena Canon, MD7, Paola Stefan, MPH1, Rosarin Sruamsiri, PhD8, Victoria F. Paly, MHS1;
1Takeda Pharmaceuticals America, Inc., Lexington, MA, USA, 2Takeda Pharmaceuticals International AG, Zurich, Switzerland, 3Takeda Ilac Saglik, Istanbul, Turkey, 4Takeda Pharmaceuticals Korea Co., Ltd., Seoul, Korea, Republic of, 5Takeda Israel Ltd, Petah Tikva, Israel, 6Takeda Distribuidora Ltda, São Paulo, SP, Brazil, 7Takeda Colombia S.A.S, Bogotá, Colombia, 8Takeda Thailand Ltd, Bangkok, Thailand
1Takeda Pharmaceuticals America, Inc., Lexington, MA, USA, 2Takeda Pharmaceuticals International AG, Zurich, Switzerland, 3Takeda Ilac Saglik, Istanbul, Turkey, 4Takeda Pharmaceuticals Korea Co., Ltd., Seoul, Korea, Republic of, 5Takeda Israel Ltd, Petah Tikva, Israel, 6Takeda Distribuidora Ltda, São Paulo, SP, Brazil, 7Takeda Colombia S.A.S, Bogotá, Colombia, 8Takeda Thailand Ltd, Bangkok, Thailand
Presentation Documents
OBJECTIVES: As oncology treatments advance, their holistic value becomes ever more important, particularly cost burden and health system constraints. During broader decision-making, supportive therapy such as blood transfusions, are not always considered, which adds to patient/health system burdens due to accumulated costs and low availability of blood products. The objective of this analysis was to assess the cost of RBC and PLT transfusions among countries within Africa, Asia, Oceania, and the Americas, and apply these estimates to an illustrative trial’s transfusion rates.
METHODS: Transfusion costs in Australia, Brazil (private/public), Colombia, India (private/public), Israel, Japan, Malasia, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Turkey, and the United States were derived using diagnosis-related group values or via micro-costing. Estimates were inflated to local currency 2024 values using local price indices and subsequently converted to United States dollars (USD). One- and two-unit (2U) RBC transfusion and single-unit (1U) PLT transfusion estimates were derived. Costs were then applied to transfusion rates from the Phase 3 HD21 study in patients aged <60 years with newly diagnosed advanced Hodgkin lymphoma treated with BrECADD (brentuximab vedotin, etoposide, cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, dacarbazine, dexamethasone): RBC 24%, PLT 17% vs escBEACOPP (escalated bleomycin, etoposide, doxorubicin, cyclophosphamide, vincristine, procarbazine, prednisone): RBC 52%, PLT 34%. Estimates are reported by treatment arm and per patient (pp) during treatment.
RESULTS: Transfusion-related costs varied widely across the included countries, reflecting differences in healthcare systems and perspectives, as well as differences in costing approaches. Illustratively, Australian unit costs for 2U RBC and 1U PLT transfusions were estimated to be $512 and $221, respectively. When applied to the transfusion rates from HD21, cost savings of $711 (62%) for RBC and $190 (57%) for PLT pp were estimated for BrECADD vs escBEACOPP.
CONCLUSIONS: When treating oncology/haematology patients, this analysis suggests that the cost implications of transfusions associated with treatments may be an important healthcare decision-making consideration.
METHODS: Transfusion costs in Australia, Brazil (private/public), Colombia, India (private/public), Israel, Japan, Malasia, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Turkey, and the United States were derived using diagnosis-related group values or via micro-costing. Estimates were inflated to local currency 2024 values using local price indices and subsequently converted to United States dollars (USD). One- and two-unit (2U) RBC transfusion and single-unit (1U) PLT transfusion estimates were derived. Costs were then applied to transfusion rates from the Phase 3 HD21 study in patients aged <60 years with newly diagnosed advanced Hodgkin lymphoma treated with BrECADD (brentuximab vedotin, etoposide, cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, dacarbazine, dexamethasone): RBC 24%, PLT 17% vs escBEACOPP (escalated bleomycin, etoposide, doxorubicin, cyclophosphamide, vincristine, procarbazine, prednisone): RBC 52%, PLT 34%. Estimates are reported by treatment arm and per patient (pp) during treatment.
RESULTS: Transfusion-related costs varied widely across the included countries, reflecting differences in healthcare systems and perspectives, as well as differences in costing approaches. Illustratively, Australian unit costs for 2U RBC and 1U PLT transfusions were estimated to be $512 and $221, respectively. When applied to the transfusion rates from HD21, cost savings of $711 (62%) for RBC and $190 (57%) for PLT pp were estimated for BrECADD vs escBEACOPP.
CONCLUSIONS: When treating oncology/haematology patients, this analysis suggests that the cost implications of transfusions associated with treatments may be an important healthcare decision-making consideration.
Conference/Value in Health Info
2025-05, ISPOR 2025, Montréal, Quebec, CA
Value in Health, Volume 28, Issue S1
Code
HSD48
Topic
Health Service Delivery & Process of Care
Disease
SDC: Oncology