Abstract
Background
Cost can be a major issue in therapeutic decision-making and in particular for patients with locally advanced non-small cell lung cancer (LA-NSCLC).
Methods
The specific aim of this analysis was to evaluate the costs and outcomes of patients treated on Radiation Therapy Oncology Group (RTOG) 94-10, Medicare Part A and Part B costs from all for patients treated from 1991 to 1996 on RTOG 94-10, a phase III trial showing a survival benefit for concurrent chemoradiation (STD RT) over sequential (RT day 50) chemoradiation in LA-NSCLC with intermediate outcome for concurrent twice daily radiation and chemotherapy (HFX RT). Twenty-six-month expected costs for each arm of the trial in 1996 dollars were determined, with Kaplan-Meier sampling average estimates of survival probabilities for each month and mean monthly costs. The analysis was performed from a payer’s perspective. Incremental cost-effectiveness ratios were calculated comparing RT on day 50 and HFX RT to the STD RT.
Results
Of the 610 patients entered, Medicare cost data and clinical outcomes were available for 92 patients. In this subset, compared to STD RT, RT on day 50 proved less costly but resulted in reduced survival at 1 year. In addition, HFX RT costs slightly more than STD RT but was less effective in this cohort of patients.
Conclusions
In patients with Medicare insurance and with significant toxicity burden, RT on day 50 is the least expensive but also least effective treatment in this subset of patients treated on RTOG 94-10.
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This work was supported by the Pennsylvania Commonwealth Universal Research Enhancement (C.U.R.E.) Program ME-02-149 grant. This trial was conducted by the Radiation Therapy Oncology Group (RTOG) and was supported by RTOG grant U10 CA21661 and CCOP grant U10 CA37422 from the National Cancer Institute (NCI).
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The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.
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As this study involved patients no animals had been involved in this study. All applicable international, national, and/or institutional guidelines for the care and use of animals were followed.
Informed consent
All patients who initially participated in this clinical study have given informed consent. All human studies have been approved by the appropriate ethics committee and have therefore been performed in accordance with the ethical standards laid down in the 1964 Declaration of Helsinki and its later amendments. All persons gave their informed consent prior to their inclusion in the original study.
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Konski, A., Bhargavan, M., Owen, J. et al. An economic analysis of Radiation Therapy Oncology Group 94-10: cost-efficacy of concurrent vs. sequential chemoradiotherapy. J Radiat Oncol 7, 195–201 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13566-018-0346-7
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13566-018-0346-7