An estimate of the annual direct cost of treating cutaneous melanoma☆,☆☆,★
Section snippets
MATERIAL AND METHODS
We constructed a steady-state model (Fig. 1) to estimate the annual direct cost of treating newly diagnosed invasive melanoma disease.
RESULTS
The total annual direct cost of treating newly diagnosed invasive melanoma disease in 1997 was approximately $560 million (Table III, Fig. 2).Item Cost Annual total cost $563,126,840 Annual cost by stage Stage I (%) $31,174,200 (5.5) Stage II (%) $30,681,200 (5.5) Stage III (%) $191,682,440 (34) Stage IV (%) $309,589,000 (55) Annual cost per patient treated by stage Stage I $1,310 Stage II $3,299 Stage III $41,670 Stage IV $42,410 Annual cost for diagnosis (%) $26,511,250 (4.7) Annual cost for various
DISCUSSION
Many types of models exist that estimate both cost and cost-effectiveness of cancer care and treatments. These models are inherently different in their purpose and design. Cost models evaluate the expenditure involved with a certain medical condition over time or treatment; it is thus an economic burden analysis. An example of cost burden analysis is the recent model estimating an approximate $328 million total direct cost for treating lung cancer over a 5-year period in Canada.21
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Cited by (0)
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Supported in part by the Marion Gardner-Jackson Trust, Bank of Boston, Trustee.
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Reprint requests: Arthur J. Sober, Department of Dermatology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Bartlett Hall, 6th Floor, Blossom St., Boston, MA 02114.
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0190-0622/98/$5.00 + 0 16/1/88405