OBJECTIVES: Cancer and muscular-skeletal diseases are embraced in the group of diseases requesting a high number of the health care resources, imposing a substantial economic burden to patient, health-social insurance and to society in Slovakia. The objective of the study was to estimate the number of productivity lost days and calculate the indirect costs associated with the consumption of the health-social insurance system. METHODS: With the use of a national database of patients we developed a retrospective analysis with the identification of the number of productivity lost days due to cancer and muscular-skeletal disorders during the period of the year 2007. By the comparison-analysis we analyzed the differences between the longest and the shortest period of productivity lost focusing on the cancer and muscular-skeletal and we calculated the health-social insurance costs. RESULTS: Cancer shows the average number of productivity lost in males 104.2 and 74.3 in females, the longest period of days of productivity lost represent 151.4 days in males age 60 and more and 119.7 days in females age 55-59. Muscular-skeletal diseases showed these results: in average 41.2 days in males and 50.3 days in females. The longest period of days of productivity lost, is 64.4 days in males age 55-59, and 76.9 days in females age 60. One day of productivity lost costs the health-social insurance system in average €140.78 per patient, in this case, days of lost productivity due to cancer represent the average costs of health insurance €25.129,23 and due to the muscular-skeletal €12.881,37; in both gender together. This number represents indirect costs. CONCLUSIONS: This retrospective analysis highlighted the importance to pay attention to indirect cost during the overall management of decision-making process for the cancer and muscular-skeletal diseases due to their high supplies of health resources.