Brain tumours in Sweden 1996: care and costs

Objectives-Brain tumours cause considerable concern due to a high mortality and there are increasing efforts to provide adequate care, sometimes outsi de hospitals. Health care utilisation, direct costs of care, and the indire ct social cost of morbidity and early mortality caused by brain tumours in Sweden in the year 1996 was analysed. Methods-Quantification of ambulatory care, care in hospital, long term and palliative/terminal care, drug consumption, temporary as well as long term morbidity, and mortality from comprehensive national data sources. Direct c osts were calculated using 1996 charges. Indirect costs were calculated by sex and age specific salaries. A sensitivity analysis considered the impact of alternative estimates of each item. Results-Indirect costs were 75% of the total and were caused mainly by earl y mortality. Direct costs were predominantly for care in hospital, long ter m care, and home health care. Among direct costs, astrocytomas III-IV and m eningiomas accounted for 42% and 30% respectively. Conclusions-The cost of illness from brain tumours reflects the characteris tics of these malignancies. Despite their low incidence rate, the economic impact caused by high mortality among young persons is a predominant trait. Costs of acute hospital care and also long term care and home care are con siderable.