COST OF BREAST-CANCER-TREATMENT - A 4-YEAR LONGITUDINAL-STUDY

Objective: To determine the longitudinal cost of the treatment of pati ents with breast cancer. Methods: An analysis was performed of 200 wom en with 205 newly diagnosed breast cancers during 1989 in a health mai ntenance organization population (US Healthcare, Blue Bell, Pa). Medic al records and claims data were analyzed for the total costs of medica l care during the 4-year period after diagnosis. The costs over time w ere analyzed for clinical stage and use of mammography screening.Resul ts: The total costs of medical care during the 4-year period after dia gnosis were strongly related to clinical stage at diagnosis, with high er total costs for patients with stages III to IV at diagnosis compare d with patients with stages 0 to II at diagnosis. The cost for all sta ges of disease declined after years 1 to 2, with the exception of stag e II, which increased slightly in years 3 to 4. The use of screening m ammography was associated with a significant decrease in the cost of m edical care during the 4-year study period. Conclusions: The goal of m ammography screening programs should be to achieve downstaging to stag es 0 to I to achieve reduction in breast cancer mortality and to reduc e the overall consumption of health care resources for the treatment o f breast cancer. These cost data should be considered within the frame work of future cost-effective analysis for screening mammography progr ams.