Robert W. Klein

Cost-Effectiveness of Pemetrexed as First-Line Maintenance Therapy for Advanced Nonsquamous Non-small Cell Lung Cancer

Introduction: The primary objective was to estimate the cost-effectiveness of maintenance therapy with pemetrexed (Pem) compared with observation, each with best supportive care, in patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) who have completed, without progression, at least four cycles of first-line platinum chemotherapy, particularly in those with nonsquamous cell histology. Secondary comparisons included Pem with erlotinib (Erl) or Pem with bevacizumab (Bev). Methods: A semi-Markov model was developed to compare the 3-year impact of Pem with three other alternatives for maintenance therapy from a United States payer perspective. Data from randomized controlled clinical trials provided clinical inputs. Medicare reimbursement rates were used to determine drug costs. A retrospective claims database analysis was used to obtain estimates of other direct NSCLC-related costs. Results: In the prespecified subset of patients with nonsquamous cell histology only, the incremental cost per life-year gained was

Cost-effectiveness of olanzapine long-acting injection in the treatment of patients with schizophrenia in the United States: a micro-simulation economic decision model

122,371 for Pem to observation and

Cost-effectiveness of preventative therapies for postmenopausal women with osteopenia

150,260 for Pem to Erl, and Bev was dominated by Pem. In all patients with advanced NSCLC regardless of histologic subtype, using Pem as maintenance therapy led to an incremental cost per life-year gained of

The cost effectiveness of teriparatide as a first-line treatment for glucocorticoid-induced and postmenopausal osteoporosis patients in Sweden

205,597 compared with observation and

The Cost-Effectiveness of Duloxetine in Chronic Low Back Pain: A US Private Payer Perspective

312,341 compared with Erl. Conclusions: Compared with observation and other agents used and/or reimbursed for maintenance therapy in advanced NSCLC, Pem may be considered cost-effective, particularly in patients with nonsquamous cell histology. This analysis is the first to evaluate the cost-effectiveness of maintenance therapy in advanced NSCLC and emphasizes the importance of histology in identifying the appropriate patient for Pem maintenance therapy.

Modeling screening, prevention, and delaying of Alzheimer's disease: an early-stage decision analytic model

Abstract Objective: To compare, from the perspective of third-party payers in the United States health care system, the cost-effectiveness of olanzapine long-acting injection (LAI, depot) with alternative antipsychotic agents including risperidone-LAI, paliperidone-LAI, haloperidol-LAI, and oral olanzapine, in the treatment of patients with schizophrenia who have been non-adherent or partially adherent with oral antipsychotics. Research design and methods: A 1-year micro-simulation economic decision model was developed to simulate the dynamics of usual care of patients with schizophrenia who continue, discontinue, switch, or restart their medication. The model uses a range of clinical and cost parameters including adherence levels, relapse with and without hospitalization, quality-adjusted life years (QALYs), treatment discontinuation rates by reason, treatment-emergent adverse events, suicide, health care resource utilization, and direct health care costs. Published medical literature and a clinical expert panel were used to develop baseline model assumptions. Outcome measures: Key model outputs include annual total direct cost (US

Cost-Effectiveness Analyses of Osteoarthritis Oral Therapies: a Systematic Review

) per treatment and incremental cost-effectiveness values per additional QALY gained. Results: Model results found that the olanzapine-LAI treatment strategy was more effective (greater QALYs) and less costly than risperidone-LAI, paliperidone-LAI, and haloperidol-LAI. In addition, olanzapine-LAI was both more effective and more costly, with an estimated incremental cost/QALY of

Cost-effectiveness of duloxetine in chronic low back pain: a Quebec societal perspective.

26,824 compared to oral olanzapine. The base-case and multiple sensitivity analyses found olanzapine-LAI to remain within acceptable cost-effective ranges (<

Mirabegron for the treatment of overactive bladder: cost-effectiveness from US commercial health-plan and Medicare Advantage perspectives

50,000) in terms of incremental cost/QALY gained. Conclusions: This micro-simulation model finds the olanzapine-LAI treatment strategy to result in better effectiveness and to be a cost-effective alternative compared to oral olanzapine and the LAI formulations of risperidone, paliperidone, and haloperidol in the treatment of non-adherent and partially adherent patients with schizophrenia in the United States. A key limitation is the assumption how LAI therapies compare to oral counterparts due to sparse head-to-head data. Further research is needed to verify baseline assumptions.

Cost Effectiveness of Duloxetine for Osteoarthritis: A Quebec Societal Perspective

BackgroundLimited data are available regarding the cost-effectiveness of preventative therapies for postmenopausal women with osteopenia. The objective of the present study was to evaluate the cost-effectiveness of raloxifene, alendronate and conservative care in this population.MethodsWe developed a microsimulation model to assess the incremental cost and effectiveness of raloxifene and alendronate relative to conservative care. We assumed a societal perspective and a lifetime time horizon. We examined clinical scenarios involving postmenopausal women from 55 to 75 years of age with bone mineral density T-scores ranging from -1.0 to -2.4. Modeled health events included vertebral and nonvertebral fractures, invasive breast cancer, and venous thromboembolism (VTE). Raloxifene and alendronate were assumed to reduce the incidence of vertebral but not nonvertebral fractures; raloxifene was assumed to decrease the incidence of breast cancer and increase the incidence of VTEs. Cost-effectiveness is reported in