Bladder cancer is 1 of the most costly cancers, however there is limited research on medical care costs by type of urinary diversion. The objective of our study was to compare medical care costs of the 2 most common urinary diversions in the year following radical cystectomy.
The Bladder Cancer Quality of Life Study included patients diagnosed with bladder cancer who underwent radical cystectomy and received an ileal conduit (IC, n = 821) or neobladder (NB, n = 181) in 3 integrated health systems. Medical care costs per patient per quarter were estimated for the year following cystectomy. Multivariable generalized linear models with a gamma distribution and log link were used to estimate mean monthly medical care costs (2022 USD$), adjusted for patient demographic and clinical characteristics.
In multivariable analysis, mean monthly costs per quarter were not significantly different between IC and NB patients in the 12 months following cystectomy. Overall, mean monthly costs in IC and NB patients were highest during the first quarter and decreased thereafter. Factors associated with higher mean costs across all quarters included presence of any complications and advanced tumor stage at cystectomy (all P < 0.001).
Our study addresses an important knowledge gap by quantifying the medical costs of bladder cancer patients by urinary diversion type and comparing costs of different treatment approaches. Studies that assess patient-reported outcomes and out-of-pocket costs, by urinary diversion type, are warranted to inform treatment decision-making and cost conversations.
Urologic oncology. 2024 Oct 14 [Epub ahead of print]
Matthew P Banegas, Maureen O'Keeffe Rosetti, Scott M Gilbert, Marilyn L Kwan, Michael C Leo, Kim N Danforth, Joanna Bulkley, Sheila Weinmann, David K Yi, Valerie S Lee, Carmit McMullen
University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA; Kaiser Permanente Northwest Center for Health Research, Portland, OR. Electronic address: ., Kaiser Permanente Northwest Center for Health Research, Portland, OR., H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute, Tampa, FL., Kaiser Permanente Division of Research, Oakland, CA., Kaiser Permanente Department of Research & Evaluation, Pasadena, CA; RTI International, Research Triangle Park, NC., Kaiser Permanente Department of Research & Evaluation, Pasadena, CA.