Assessment of health economics in Alzheimer's disease (AHEAD) - Galantamine treatment in Canada

Background: Given the high costs of caring for patients with AD in Canada, it is important to evaluate the costs of new therapies that halt or delay t he advancement of AD, relative to the savings associated with delaying dise ase progression. Methods: The Assessment of Health Economics in Alzheimer's Disease (AHEAD) model, which uses algorithms to predict the time until pat ients with AD require full-time care (FTC), was adapted to Canada to compar e treatment with galantamine versus no pharmacologic treatment. Data from t wo clinical trials provided inputs into the algorithms, and forecasts were made for up to 10 years. Drug and health care costs were evaluated accordin g to the stage of disease based on Quebec unit costs along with follow-up d ata from the Canadian Study of Health and Aging. Results: Galantamine is pr edicted to reduce the duration of FTC by almost 10%. Approximately 5.6 pati ents with mild to moderate disease must be placed on treatment to avoid one year of FTC, resulting in savings averaging $788 CAD ($528 USD) per patien t. For patients with moderate disease, 3.9 patients must be placed on treat ment to avoid one year of FTC, with savings predicted at $3718 CAD ($2533 U SD) per patient. Conclusion: Galantamine cannot only potentially increase t he time before patients require FTC, but may also lead to overall savings b ecause treatment costs are offset by reductions in other health care expend itures.