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Perspectives of Japanese oncologists on the health economics of innovative cancer treatments

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Abstract

Background

Few reports have thus far discussed the influence of economic factors on treatment decision-making by patients. The objective of the present study was to clarify the awareness among oncologists of health economics in cancer treatment.

Methods

The present study was based on the questionnaire regarding health economics in cancer treatment carried out by the Japan Society of Clinical Oncology (JSCO) in July 2013. The subjects were trustees registered with JSCO. The survey investigated the influence of medical expenses on patient access to and selection of medical treatment in order to clarify the primary attributes of the respondents and their awareness of economics. The study also investigated the maximum allowable public medical expenses to prolong the life expectancy of a cancer patient by 1 year and the factors that can influence treatment selection.

Results

The 172 respondents had completed a mean of 30.3 ± 6.2 postgraduate years, and the mean number of patients they treated annually was 1323 ± 1963. The degree of treatment accessibility among patients was perceived positively by 112 (71.3 %) and negatively by 49 (28.7 %) of the respondents, irrespective of medical expenses. Of the 172 respondents, 66 (41.0 %) believed that the maximum allowable medical expenses for cancer treatment should be ≤4 million yen/LY, with 62 (39.8 %) reporting a value of 4.01–8 million yen/LY.

Conclusion

The findings of this study suggest that a certain range of medical expenses has come to be regarded as the standard range of medical expenses for cancer treatment among oncologists, with answers based on the premise that patients should have access to effective medical treatment.

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Acknowledgments

The authors would like to express their deep appreciation to all trustees of JSCO for their cooperation in this study.

Funding

This research was supported and funded by the 51st Annual Meeting of the Japan Society of Clinical Oncology.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Health Care Economics and Industrial Policy, Osaka University Graduate School of Medicine, 2-2 Yamadaoka, Suita, Osaka, 565-0871, Japan

    Tomoyuki Takura

  2. Division of Gastroenterology and Hematology/Oncology, Department of Medicine, Asahikawa Medical University, Asahikawa, Japan

    Mikihiro Fujiya & Yutaka Kohgo

  3. Gastrointestinal Medical Oncology Division, National Cancer Center Hospital, Tokyo, Japan

    Yasuhiro Shimada

Authors
  1. Tomoyuki Takura
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  2. Mikihiro Fujiya
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  3. Yasuhiro Shimada
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  4. Yutaka Kohgo
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Tomoyuki Takura.

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Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

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Takura, T., Fujiya, M., Shimada, Y. et al. Perspectives of Japanese oncologists on the health economics of innovative cancer treatments. Int J Clin Oncol 21, 633–641 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10147-015-0932-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10147-015-0932-2

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