Willingness to Pay for Surgical Treatments for Basal Cell Carcinoma: A Population-Based Cross-Sectional Study

Keratinocyte carcinoma (KC) treatment accounts for approximately $5 billion in spending per year, yet no studies have evaluated the US general public's willingness to pay (WTP) for these procedures.

To determine the monetary value of surgical KC treatments, as perceived by society, as a measure of preference.

We performed an internet-based age-, sex-, and race-stratified cross-sectional survey of 425 subjects representative of the US general population. Stated WTP and desirability of electrodesiccation and curettage (EDC), excision, and Mohs micrographic surgery (MMS) for facial and extrafacial basal cell carcinoma (BCC) were assessed. A discrete choice experiment was performed using maximum likelihood estimation, and a secondary analysis was performed to determine the influence of framing MMS as the best treatment option.

A total of 425 subjects finished their questionnaires, yielding a completion rate of 97%. Median (interquartile range) stated WTP for EDC, excision, and MMS were $1,000 (421-2,079), $1,503 (562-3,062), and $3,006 (1,250-5,084), respectively, when MMS was framed in a standard fashion. Stated WTP for MMS increased to $3,989 (2,015-5,801) when it was framed as the best option. For BCC on the back, WTP for MMS dropped by 12%.

There is markedly higher societal WTP for MMS on both the face and trunk, regardless of whether MMS is framed as the best option. Gold-standard bias may affect WTP and desirability in medical decision-making under uncertainty, inflating the WTP of options framed as the best while decreasing the desirability of alternatives.