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Cost of childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia care in Shanghai, China
Yin Liu1, Jing Chen, JingYan Tang
1Department of Hematology/Oncology, Shanghai Children's Medical Center, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China.
Insights
Pediatric acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) treatment costs averaged under $11,000, with risk group and complications significantly impacting expenses. Reasonable clinical outcomes were achieved, highlighting cost-effectiveness in childhood ALL therapy.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Oncology
- Health Economics
- Clinical Research
Background:
- Acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) is a common pediatric cancer.
- Economic factors hinder complete treatment in low- and middle-income countries.
- Data on pediatric ALL therapy costs is often incomplete.
Purpose of the Study:
- To analyze the overall costs of pediatric ALL therapies.
- To identify the main cost drivers in childhood ALL treatment.
- To correlate costs with clinical outcomes and risk factors.
Main Methods:
- Retrospective analysis of hospital database for 45 newly diagnosed pediatric ALL patients.
- Data collected from May 2005 to June 2006, including treatment protocols and complications.
- Cost breakdown into in-hospital and clinic expenses, including medicines and laboratory tests.
Main Results:
- Average total cost per patient was approximately $10,993.96 (in-hospital and clinic combined).
- Medicine and laboratory tests constituted 40.5% and 21.5% of costs, respectively.
- Costs varied significantly based on risk group and presence of severe complications (P < 0.05).
Conclusions:
- Risk group and severe complications are key determinants of total medical costs in pediatric ALL.
- The average overall cost for childhood ALL in this study was under $11,000.
- The study demonstrated reasonable clinical results, suggesting cost-effective treatment.
Background:
Acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) is the most common and curable malignant pediatric disease in children. In low- and middle-income countries, however, economic factors prevent many patients from receiving complete treatment, even as government and insurance entities lack complete data on the costs for ALL therapies. Here, we analyzed the overall costs for pediatric ALL therapies and their constitutive elements.
Procedure:
All cost information was drawn from our hospital database. We analyzed the costs of 45 newly diagnosed children with ALL from May 2005 to June 2006; 20 were classified into low-risk group, 25 into medium-risk group, and all had completed the ALL-2005 protocol treatment. Forty cases were B-lineage, four were T-lineage, and one was double-lymphoid lineage.
Results:
Average total clinic expense per person was US $3,694.58 +/- 1,376.85. Average total in-hospital expense per patient was US $7,299.48 +/- 6,526.39, with a large individual difference. Medicine and laboratory test costs represented 40.5% and 21.5%, respectively. Patients stayed at home or attended clinic for more than 90% of the therapy period. In-hospital and clinic constituted 66.4% and 33.6% of costs, respectively. Costs among risk groups and with/without severe complications differed significantly (P < 0.05). Thirty-month event-free survivals were 94.14% and 82.81% for the low- and medium-risk groups, respectively.
Conclusion:
Risk group and severe complications were main factors affecting total medical costs. Average overall costs for childhood ALL in this study were less than US $11,000, with reasonable clinical results.
