Gunjan L. Shah

Value of innovation in hematologic malignancies: a systematic review of published cost-effectiveness analyses.

We analyzed cost-effectiveness studies related to hematologic malignancies from the Tufts Medical Center Cost-Effectiveness Analysis Registry (www.cearegistry.org), focusing on studies of innovative therapies. Studies that met inclusion criteria were categorized by 4 cancer types (chronic myeloid leukemia, chronic lymphocytic leukemia, non-Hodgkin lymphoma, and multiple myeloma) and 9 treatment agents (interferon-α, alemtuzumab, bendamustine, bortezomib, dasatinib, imatinib, lenalidomide, rituximab alone or in combination, and thalidomide). We examined study characteristics and stratified cost-effectiveness ratios by type of cancer, treatment, funder, and year of study publication. Twenty-nine studies published in the years 1996-2012 (including 44 cost-effectiveness ratios) met inclusion criteria, 22 (76%) of which were industry funded. Most ratios fell below

Cost-Effectiveness of Autologous Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation for Elderly Patients with Multiple Myeloma using the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results–Medicare Database

50,000 per quality-adjusted life-years (QALY) (73%) and

Bortezomib Subcutaneous Injection in Combination Regimens for Myeloma or Systemic Light-Chain Amyloidosis: A Retrospective Chart Review of Response Rates and Toxicity in Newly Diagnosed Patients

100,000/QALY (86%). Industry-funded studies (n = 22) reported a lower median ratio (

What intensivists need to know about hemophagocytic syndrome: an underrecognized cause of death in adult intensive care units.

26,000/QALY) than others (n = 7;

The Real World Effectiveness of Hematopoietic Transplant Among Elderly Individuals With Multiple Myeloma

33,000/QALY), although the difference was not statistically significant. Published data suggest that innovative treatments for hematologic malignancies may provide reasonable value for money.

Autologous Transplantation in Follicular Lymphoma with Early Therapy Failure: A National LymphoCare Study and Center for International Blood and Marrow Transplant Research Analysis

In the past decade, the number of autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplants (Auto HSCT) for older patients with multiple myeloma (MM) has increased dramatically, as has the cost of transplantation. The cost-effectiveness of this modality in patients over age 65 is unclear. Using the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results-Medicare database to create a propensity-score matched sample of patients over age 65 between 2000 and 2007, we compared the survival and cost for those who received Auto HSCT to those who did not undergo transplantation but survived at least 6 months after diagnosis, and we calculated an incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER). Two hundred seventy patients underwent transplantation. Median overall survival from diagnosis in those who underwent transplantation was significantly longer than in patients who did not (58 months versus 37 months, P < .001). For patients living longer than 2 years, the median monthly cost during the first year was significantly different, but the middle and last year of life costs were similar. The median cost of the first 100 days after transplantation was

Mitomycin-C-Induced TTP/HUS Treated Successfully with Rituximab: Case Report and Review of the Literature

60,000 (range,

Robust Vaccine Responses in Adult and Pediatric Cord Blood Transplantation Recipients Treated for Hematologic Malignancies

37,000 to

Plerixafor and G-CSF for autologous stem cell mobilization in AL amyloidosis.

85,000). The resultant ICER was

Effects of Late Toxicities on Outcomes in Long-Term Survivors of Ex-Vivo CD34+-Selected Allogeneic Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation

72,852 per life-year gained. Survival after transplantation was comparable to that in those who underwent transplantation patients under 65 years and significantly longer than older patients who did not undergo transplantation. With an ICER less than