| 1. |
- Ghatnekar, Ola, et al.
(författare)
-
Direct hospital resource utilization and costs of treating patients with multiple myeloma in Southwest Sweden: a 5-year retrospective analysis.
- 2008
-
Ingår i: Clinical Therapeutics. - : Elsevier BV. - 0149-2918. ; 30:9, s. 1704-1713
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- BACKGROUND: Approximately 570 patients are diagnosed with multiple myeloma (MM) in Sweden each year. Few studies have estimated the cost of treatment for these patients. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to retrospectively investigate the direct hospital resource utilization and costs associated with the treatment of patients with MM in southwest Sweden. METHODS: Patients aged > or =18 years who initiated first-line chemotherapy in the year 2001 at hospitals in southwestern Sweden were included in this retrospective chart review. Direct hospital-based resources and their corresponding costs (year-2006 euros) for each patient were calculated until the patient's death, or until December 31, 2005. Costs for outpatient and terminal stage care related to MM were not included. RESULTS: Ninety-four patients were included; 20 were still alive at study completion. Mean age at diagnosis was 76 years and patients were followed for a mean of 32.7 months; 55% were males and 74% had at least 1 comorbidity. First-, second-, and third-line treatment lasted a mean of 24.3, 5.8, and 2.6 months, and included 2.8, 2.6, and 3.1 chemotherapy drugs per patient, respectively. Of the 80 patients who received first-line chemotherapy, 72 were prescribed melphalan and 55 patients received a combination of melphalan and prednisone, as recommended by Swedish treatment guidelines. The mean total cost per patient was euro88,199, or euro2770 per patient-month. Therapy-induced and comorbidity-related events constituted 42% of total costs, as much as autologous stem-cell transplantation and inpatient care together. Chemotherapy, bisphosphonate, and blood cell-enhancement drugs each amounted to only 2% of total costs, but chemotherapy drugs increased from euro29/month in first-line therapy to euro453/month in third-line therapy. CONCLUSIONS: The cost of treating Swedish patients with MM varied greatly between individuals but, overall, chemotherapy drugs constituted only a minor part of the total monthly cost (2%), whereas costs for inpatient stays and therapy-induced adverse events or comorbidity-related events accounted for 35% and42%, respectively. There was no significant differencein monthly cost between treatment lines.
|
|
| 2. |
- Söderström, Ann, 1961, et al.
(författare)
-
Predictive factors and virological response to interferon treatment in children with chronic hepatitis B.
- 2005
-
Ingår i: Scandinavian journal of infectious diseases. - : Informa UK Limited. - 0036-5548 .- 1651-1980. ; 37:1, s. 40-7
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Further knowledge about factors predicting response to interferon treatment for chronic hepatitis B in children is required, in particular as the benefits of therapy are uncertain. In the present study, baseline characteristics were related to virological and histological responses in 27 children given interferon-alpha for 24 weeks after steroid priming. HBe seroconversion was seen in 8 of 27 HBeAg positive patients and was accompanied by a sustained virological response (SR), with a median 4.1 log HBV DNA reduction. Pretreatment viraemia level was the only baseline parameter associated with SR. After 12 weeks of IFN (mid-treatment), viraemia was significantly reduced in all patients, with a median of 3.0 (range 0.6-5.2) log decline in SR compared with 0.6 (range -0.5-3.6) log decline in non-sustained responders (NSR). HBV DNA levels below 1 million copies/ml at week 12 predicted sustained response with a positive predictive value of 75% and a negative predictive value of 89%. During the latter half of the IFN treatment HBV DNA tended to increase by a mean of 0.4-0.5 log for all patient groups. Flares during IFN treatment were rare or mild as measured by ALT. Pretreatment anti-HBc IgM was associated with liver damage but not with response. Histological inflammation scores were improved in SR. Thus, pretreatment HBV DNA levels were associated with IFN response, and the virological response at week 12 predicts SR and may be useful in the decision to continue or modify therapy.
|
|
