DIRECT HEALTH CARE COSTS OF LIP, ORAL CAVITY, AND OROPHARYNGEAL CANCER IN BRAZIL

Abstract

<h3>Objectives</h3> The aim of this study was to estimate the health care costs of oral cancer (OC) in Brazil (2008-2016). <h3>Study Design</h3> This is a partial economic evaluation using a top-down method, considering direct health care costs related to outpatients, inpatients, intensive care units, and number of procedures. Data were extracted from the National Outpatient and Inpatient Information Systems, according to the 10th Revision of the <i>International Classification of Diseases</i> to sites of interest: C00 to C06, C09 and C10. Values were adjusted for annual accumulated inflation and expressed in 2018 I$ (1 I$ = R$2,044). <h3>Results</h3> Expenditure on OC health care in Brazil was I$495.6 million. Outpatients represented 50.8% (I$251.6 million) and inpatients 49.2% (I$244.0 million). About 177,317 admissions and 6,224,236 outpatient procedures were registered. Chemotherapy and radiotherapy comprised the largest number of procedures (88.8%) and costs (94.9%). Most of the costs were spent on people over 50 years old (72.9%) and males (75.6%). <h3>Conclusions</h3> Direct health care costs for OC are substantial. Men over 50 years old consumed most of the costs and procedures and the sites with highest expenditures were the oropharynx and tongue. Further studies are needed to investigate the cost per individual and indirect costs of OC.