Medical Resource Use and Medical Costs for Radiotherapy-Related Adverse Effects: A Systematic Review
Author(s)
Chen YH1, Molenaar D2, Uyl-De Groot C3, van Vulpen M4, Blommestein HM5
1Erasmus School of Health Policy & Management, Rotterdam, Netherlands, 2Amsterdam UMC, Amsterdam, Netherlands, 3Erasmus University Rotterdam, Rotterdam, Netherlands, 4Holland Particle Therapy Centre, Delft, Netherlands, 5Erasmus School of Health Policy and Management, Erasmus University Rotterdam, Rotterdam, Netherlands
Presentation Documents
OBJECTIVES : Despite the need of proper cost-effectiveness analyses (CEAs) for new radiotherapies, the economics burden of radiotherapy induced adverse effects (RIAE) remains unclear. We conducted a systematic review to identify existing evidence of healthcare resource use and costs related to RIAE and to provide recommendations for including these evidences in CEAs. METHODS : A systematic review of healthcare resource use and/or medical costs related to RIAE in head and neck cancer, brain cancer, prostate cancer, eye cancer and breast cancer patients was performed up to 2020, using MEDLINE, EMBASE, Web of Science, Cochrane and PsycINFO databases. Healthcare resource use and medical costs reported by eligible studies were extracted and stratified by cancer types and adverse effect types, with resource use converted to monetary value using NHS price. RESULTS : In total, 31 articles were selected for final review. Head and neck cancer (72.2%) was the most common cancer type studied within non-modelling studies, while prostate cancer (54%) was the most frequently studied cancer type within modelling studies. The number of studies focusing on the other three cancer types were relatively small (N=5, 16%). Resource use for treating the same RIAE varied considerably across studies, for instance the hospitalization duration for mucositis ranged from 0.5 to 47 days and the costs range from $2,949 to $17,244. This broad range could be related to differences in 1) RIAE severity in the study population, 2) study design, 3) cost estimation approach, 4) country and clinical practice. CONCLUSIONS : Our findings revealed unignorable differences for the same RIAE among studies, which implied the potential for the economic burden of RIAE being overestimated or underestimated in CEA for radiotherapy. Adjustment for severity, country and clinical practice setting is recommended. This study also pointed out the vacuum in the economic and resource utilization studies regarding RIAE treatment and the need for further research.
Conference/Value in Health Info
2021-11, ISPOR Europe 2021, Copenhagen, Denmark
Value in Health, Volume 24, Issue 12, S2 (December 2021)
Code
POSA165
Topic
Economic Evaluation
Disease
Oncology