Healthcare economics of bladder cancer: cost-enhancing and cost-reducing factors

Abstract

The diagnosis and treatment of bladder cancer represents a significant financial burden to the population in the United States. Therapeutic advances in bladder cancer care have come at a high cost to payers, providers, and patients. This study describes the principals of cost-effectiveness evaluation in healthcare and provides recommendations for a more economical use of resources in bladder cancer care. Although several studies have demonstrated that bladder cancer is a common disease associated with substantial economic burden for patients and society, the evidence supporting the cost-effectiveness of many interventions in bladder cancer care is limited and of insufficient quality. In addition, very little is known about quality of life, the preferred outcome measure for economic evaluations, associated with bladder cancer states and treatments. Moreover, current clinical guidelines for bladder cancer care do not incorporate economic factors when evaluating clinical pathways. Although cost-effectiveness studies in bladder cancer could allow us to know how healthcare dollars are being spent and assist in determining more effective ways to allocate resources, most of the currently used interventions have not undergone economic assessment.