Cost-effectiveness of erlotinib compared to gefitinib for NSCLC with EGFR mutations at the Inca

Abstract

Objective: According to the World Health Organization (WHO), lung cancer (LC) is the most common and lethal neoplasm in men and the second most common in women worldwide. The LC comprises several histological types, including small cell lung cancer and the different types of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). This subtype represents about 80% of the cases and mainly comprises adenocarcinoma. The therapy of choice for epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) mutant NSCLC are tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKI), like erlotinib and gefitinib. In this article, we evaluate the cost-effectiveness of erlotinib in comparison to gefitinib. Methods: A cost-effectiveness analysis was performed from the perspective of a Sistema Único de Saúde (SUS) federal hospital. In a decision tree model, the effectiveness and safety outcomes of TKIs were applied. The clinical data were extracted from the medical records and the direct costs consulted in official sources of the Ministry of Health. Results: The cost of 10 months of processing, encompassing the TKI value, procedures and resources of adverse events was R$ 63.266,76 for the year and R$ 39.594,72 for gefitinib. Forging cards have equal and statistically significant effectiveness for the safety outcome. Conclusion: Gefitinib, in this context, is a dominant technology when process costs are associated with those of managing adverse events.