Earlier this week, or maybe it was last week, I saw several articles on this new intraoperative radiation for breast cancer. This is when a radioactive probe is inserted into the breast during surgery and allows the patient to skip traditional radiation. Of course, they may still need chemotherapy and other treatments.
The first articles I saw touted its benefits. I was a bit pessimistic about this. I have heard about it and think it is approved in the US (but I am no doctor so don't think I know all about this). It is only for certain early stage breast cancers so it is not for everyone.
The reason for this hype is that it was just approved in the UK's NHS. And then I just saw this article about a UK doctor's thoughts on this:
"The treatment, given approval for NHS use in draft guidance by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence, would benefit up to 36,000 people nationwide.
The technique, called intra-operative radiation, is suitable only for patients who have caught their cancer early..."
"...The initial price of the treatment is expensive, with each probe costing £500,000.
The procedure is performed during surgery.
Once the tumour is removed, a probe is inserted into the breast and delivers radiation to the site of the cancer for about half an hour."
That is when I fell off my chair. Am I understanding this correctly? Each probe costs £500,000. Clearly it must mean the entire big instrument. Not just an individual probe. But I can't tell for sure based on how the article is written.
If its £500,000 for a single treatment, that is crazy. And if the machine costs £500,000, that's just damn expensive. Not a practical option in my opinion.
Showing posts with label expensive. Show all posts
Showing posts with label expensive. Show all posts
Thursday, July 30, 2015
Friday, January 30, 2015
Not a practical option
Earlier this week, or maybe it was last week, I saw several articles on this new intraoperative radiation for breast cancer. This is when a radioactive probe is inserted into the breast during surgery and allows the patient to skip traditional radiation. Of course, they may still need chemotherapy and other treatments.
The first articles I saw touted its benefits. I was a bit pessimistic about this. I have heard about it and think it is approved in the US (but I am no doctor so don't think I know all about this). It is only for certain early stage breast cancers so it is not for everyone.
The reason for this hype is that it was just approved in the UK's NHS. And then I just saw this article about a UK doctor's thoughts on this:
"The treatment, given approval for NHS use in draft guidance by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence, would benefit up to 36,000 people nationwide.
The technique, called intra-operative radiation, is suitable only for patients who have caught their cancer early..."
"...The initial price of the treatment is expensive, with each probe costing £500,000.
The procedure is performed during surgery.
Once the tumour is removed, a probe is inserted into the breast and delivers radiation to the site of the cancer for about half an hour."
That is when I fell off my chair. Am I understanding this correctly? Each probe costs £500,000. Clearly it must mean the entire big instrument. Not just an individual probe. But I can't tell for sure based on how the article is written.
If its £500,000 for a single treatment, that is crazy. And if the machine costs £500,000, that's just damn expensive. Not a practical option in my opinion.
The first articles I saw touted its benefits. I was a bit pessimistic about this. I have heard about it and think it is approved in the US (but I am no doctor so don't think I know all about this). It is only for certain early stage breast cancers so it is not for everyone.
The reason for this hype is that it was just approved in the UK's NHS. And then I just saw this article about a UK doctor's thoughts on this:
"The treatment, given approval for NHS use in draft guidance by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence, would benefit up to 36,000 people nationwide.
The technique, called intra-operative radiation, is suitable only for patients who have caught their cancer early..."
"...The initial price of the treatment is expensive, with each probe costing £500,000.
The procedure is performed during surgery.
Once the tumour is removed, a probe is inserted into the breast and delivers radiation to the site of the cancer for about half an hour."
That is when I fell off my chair. Am I understanding this correctly? Each probe costs £500,000. Clearly it must mean the entire big instrument. Not just an individual probe. But I can't tell for sure based on how the article is written.
If its £500,000 for a single treatment, that is crazy. And if the machine costs £500,000, that's just damn expensive. Not a practical option in my opinion.
Tuesday, January 13, 2015
Breakthroughs and costs
Several drug companies are poised to bring significant breakthroughs in cancer treatment. One woman is referenced as going from stage IV lung cancer, a deadly place to be, to being cancer free after several months of treatment.
And here's the but. Who can afford $100,000/patient/year/drug. And if the drugs are used in combination that number could be $300,000/patient/year. No one can afford that. And we can't ask the insurance companies to pay that much. They would be bankrupt - as well as all the patients.
Put it this way, ten years of treatment is $1,000,000 per drug. So every ten years, a pharma company is a million dollars richer.
So what are we to do?
The world is changing. We are getting to a place where a cure for cancer is closer to a reality. However the pharma industry's business plans bring us expensive cures. While we need the cure for cancer, we need a new business model which allows for affordable treatments.
As the world changes, the industries concerned need to change as well. These industries are health insurance, pharma manufacturers, and individual patients. Yes we all need to change and adapt to the new world where a cure for cancer is a reality and not a dream
And here's the but. Who can afford $100,000/patient/year/drug. And if the drugs are used in combination that number could be $300,000/patient/year. No one can afford that. And we can't ask the insurance companies to pay that much. They would be bankrupt - as well as all the patients.
Put it this way, ten years of treatment is $1,000,000 per drug. So every ten years, a pharma company is a million dollars richer.
So what are we to do?
The world is changing. We are getting to a place where a cure for cancer is closer to a reality. However the pharma industry's business plans bring us expensive cures. While we need the cure for cancer, we need a new business model which allows for affordable treatments.
As the world changes, the industries concerned need to change as well. These industries are health insurance, pharma manufacturers, and individual patients. Yes we all need to change and adapt to the new world where a cure for cancer is a reality and not a dream
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