Abstract PO-213: Financial implication of prostate cancer hypofractionated radiotherapy

Abstract

Abstract Background- Prostate cancer is the 2nd most common cancer in males, worldwide & not far behind lung cancer incidence. Radiation holds the potential to cure non-metastatic disease (T1b-T3a), however the old 8-week long conventional radiation treatment is too lengthy & costly for patients. Non-inferiority CHHiP trial established 4 week long hypofractionated radiation which provided a big relief to patients saving substantial cost & time. Method- From January 2020 to December 2020, I had adopted the shorter 4-week radiation regimen for all eligible prostate cancer patients (T1b-T3a N0 M0) needing radiation & the expenditure, both direct as well as indirect, was calculated. Direct cost includes cost of radiation, treatment planning & was obtained from hospital bills. Drug cost was excluded as the amount was too small & insignificant. Indirect cost includes the cost of staying in the city, food & the cost of commuting (local patients) which were obtained from each patient. Total cost during radiation was compared for both 8 week & 4-week regimen. 10 patients participated in the study. Result- Direct cost had reduced from 1750 USD to 1100 USD favoring the shorter 4-week regimen. This translates to 37% cost reduction. Indirect cost was reduced by 50% as the duration of stay reduced from 51 days (8 weeks RT) to 26 days (4 weeks RT) for patients who are from other cities. Those from local place had informed similar figure of commuting cost reduction. Overall, the total cost (direct & indirect) of radiation treatment was reduced by 40%. Conclusion- All patients were glad to know the reduced duration of radiation treatment & 40% cost saving. The time factor has not been taken into account, few patients on job were able join their workplace 4 weeks earlier. Citation Format: Suryakanta Acharya. Financial implication of prostate cancer hypofractionated radiotherapy [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the AACR Virtual Conference: 14th AACR Conference on the Science of Cancer Health Disparities in Racial/Ethnic Minorities and the Medically Underserved; 2021 Oct 6-8. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2022;31(1 Suppl):Abstract nr PO-213.