Cost of Treating Patients Who Undergo Resection of Colorectal Liver Metastases: An Australian Pilot Study

The cost of treating cancer, especially metastatic disease, can place a financial burden on patients, caregivers, and the healthcare system. A previous systematic review assessing the cost of treating metastatic colorectal cancer in the era of personalized medicine showed that this was approximately 300,000 USD. Surprisingly, there is little data on the cost of treating patients with colorectal liver metastases (CRLM). The aim of this study was to conduct a pilot cost-of-illness study on patients who undergo liver resection for CRLM in Australia.

This was a retrospective cohort study examining the direct medical costs to the healthcare system and out-of-pocket costs to patients who underwent resection for CRLM in 1 year (2018). These costs were calculated in 2022 Australian dollars from the time of the diagnosis of the liver metastases to the time of the last follow-up.

A total of 25 patients underwent resection in 2018, but only 16 received all their treatment at the Northern Campus. The median total cost of treating each patient was $328,773.59 (range: $63,244.40-$525,873.10). The highest cost was for medical oncology treatment, with a median of $90,228.87 per patient (range: $2087.06-$241,514.80), followed by liver surgery and consultations, $57,131.76 (range: $12,455.10-$319,178.90), and colorectal surgery and consultations, $55,990.29 (range: $7234.19-$200,755.60). Patients considered to be cured of their disease had a lower median cost than patients who had either died from their disease or were undergoing treatment for recurrent disease ($152,476.50 vs. $351,487.50, p = 0.030).

This study demonstrates that the cost of treating patients with CRLM in Australia is moderate but is considerably lower than many other cancer types, especially for those who are cured, reflecting good value care.