The economic burden of cancer in the UK: a study of survivors treated with curative intent
Menée au Royaume-Uni à partir de données portant sur 298 patients ayant survécu à un cancer 1 an après le diagnostic et ayant terminé un traitement à visée curative (136 cas de cancer du sein, 83 cas de cancer du côlon-rectum, 79 cas de cancer de la prostate), cette étude analyse les coûts associés à l'après-cancer pour la société et pour les patients
Objective : We aim to describe the economic burden of UK cancer survivorship for breast, colorectal and prostate cancer patients treated with curative intent, 1 year post-diagnosis. Methods : Patient-level data were collected over a 3-month period 12–15 months post-diagnosis to estimate the monthly societal costs incurred by cancer survivors. Self-reported resource utilisation data were obtained via the electronic Patient-reported Outcomes from Cancer Survivors system and included community-based health and social care, medications, travel costs and informal care. Hospital costs were retrieved through data linkage. Multivariate regression analysis was used to examine cost predictors. Results : Overall, 298 patients were included in the analysis, including 136 breast cancer, 83 colorectal cancer and 79 prostate cancer patients. The average monthly societal cost was $US409 (95%CI: $US316–$US502) [mean: £260, 95%CI: £198–£322] and was incurred by 92% of patients. This was divided into costs to the National Health Service (mean: $US279, 95%CI: $US207–$US351) [mean: £177, 95%CI: £131–£224], patients' out-of-pocket (OOP) expenses (mean: $US40, 95%CI: $US15–$US65) [mean: £25, 95%CI: £9–£42] and the cost of informal care (mean: $US110, 95%CI: $US57–$US162) [mean: £70, 95%CI: £38–£102]. The distribution of costs was skewed with a small number of patients incurring very high costs. Multivariate analyses showed higher societal costs for breast cancer patients. Significant predictors of OOP costs included age and socioeconomic deprivation. Conclusions : This study found the economic burden of cancer survivorship is unevenly distributed in the population and that cancer survivors may still incur substantial costs over 1 year post-diagnosis. In addition, this study illustrates the feasibility of using an innovative online data collection platform to collect patient-reported resource utilisation information. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.