Economic Evaluation of Particle Therapy for Cancer Treatment: A Systematic Review

Area of Science:

• Radiation Oncology
• Health Economics
• Medical Technology Assessment

Background:

• Particle therapy offers advanced radiation oncology treatment options.
• The cost-effectiveness of particle therapy compared to conventional methods remains largely undetermined.
• Establishing the economic value of novel cancer treatments is crucial for healthcare systems.

Purpose of the Study:

• To systematically review and synthesize contemporary evidence on the cost-effectiveness of particle therapy.
• To assess the methodological quality of existing cost-effectiveness studies on particle therapy.
• To identify factors influencing the cost-effectiveness of particle therapy across different cancer types and treatment approaches.

Main Methods:

• Systematic literature search across multiple electronic databases.
• Quality assessment of included studies using established criteria.
• Extraction and synthesis of data on costs, health benefits, and incremental cost-effectiveness ratios (ICERs).

Main Results:

• 57 studies reporting 134 comparisons of particle therapies were identified.
• Most studies focused on proton therapy versus photon therapy, using Markov models from a payer's perspective.
• Reported ICERs varied widely ($55 to $1,066,266 per unit of benefit), indicating inconsistent cost-effectiveness.
• Methodological quality was generally good, but reporting of data sources and modeling assumptions needs improvement.

Conclusions:

• Particle therapy demonstrates cost-effectiveness for specific patient subgroups but not universally.
• Significant discrepancies in cost-effectiveness exist across different cancer sites and particle treatment modalities.
• Further research is essential to pinpoint patient populations and scenarios where particle therapy provides optimal economic value.