Melanoma costs: a dynamic model comparing estimated overall costs of various clinical stages.

BACKGROUND

The rapidly increasing incidence of melanoma occurs at the same time as an increase in general healthcare costs, particularly the expenses associated with cancer care. Previous cost estimates in melanoma have not utilized a dynamic model considering the evolution of the disease and have not integrated the multiple costs associated with different aspects of medical interventions and patient-related factors. Futhermore, previous calculations have not been updated to reflect the modern tendencies in healthcare costs.

METHODS

We designed a comprehensive model of expenses in melanoma that considers the dynamic costs generated by the natural progression of the disease, which produces costs associated with treatment, surveillance, loss of income, and terminal care. The complete range of initial clinical (TNM) stages of the disease and initial tumor stages were analyzed in this model and the total healthcare costs for the five years following melanoma presentation at each particular stage were calculated.

RESULTS

We have observed dramatic incremental total costs associated with progressively higher initial stages of the disease, ranging from a total of $4,648.48 for in situ tumors to $159,808.17 for Stage IV melanoma. By stage, early lesions associate 30-55 percent of their costs for the treatment of the primary tumor, due to a low rate of recurrence (local, regional, or distant), which limits the need for additional interventions. For in situ melanoma, T1a, and T1b, surveillance is an important contributor to the medical costs, accounting for more than 25 percent of the total cost over 5 years. In contrast, late lesions incur a much larger proportion of their associated costs (up to 80-85%) from the diagnosis and treatment of metastatic disease because of the increased propensity of those lesions to disseminate. This cost increases with increasing tumor stage (from $2,442.17 for T1a to $6,678.00 for T4b). The most expensive items in the medical care of patients with melanoma consist of adjuvant treatment with IFN-alpha ($75,955.18), palliative care ($14,500), and administration of chemotherapy ($1,967.10 for a triple combination of agents); there are even higher costs for biochemotherapy, the new tyrosine kinase and antiangiogenic drugs, and hospital treatment of neutropenic fever ($1,535.00 to $1,800.00/day).

CONCLUSIONS

There is a significant cost decrement when melanoma is diagnosed at an earlier stage, with a T4b lesion being approximately 2200 percent more expensive to diagnose and treat than an early in situ melanoma and 1000 percent more expensive than a stage T1a tumor. Although a direct comparison with other cancers would require the use of the same dynamic model, it is apparent that the high costs of melanoma care places it at the top of the most expensive cancers to diagnose, follow, and treat. These high costs for advanced-stage melanoma warrant an increased emphasis on developing effective strategies for its early diagnosis and treatment.