Saving costs, saving lives

  • by: |
  • 03/03/2008
Although HTAs seem not to have hit my home country yet, because of socialized medicine this appears generally without giving its name.

Recently, the head doctor and chief of oncology at the university hospital of Lund (south Sweden) caught headlines by stating that he had changed his mind about approving new cancer medicines, as results kept improving due to these new treatments. In this week’s issue of Dagens Medicin (a Swedish weekly for health care, www.dagensmedicin.se), he restates the budgetary implications of having recourse to the latest treatments : "If a new medicine with a proven impact on the current pathology exists, then most patients (…) will demand it, regardless of the therapeutic effect."

Indeed : so would most patients, and so would Dr. Rose. His concern is budgetary, both as head of a clinic and as a professional. And his reversed position is very positive ; but saying that, since the number of new treatments in oncology is increasing radically, the "equation is insoluble" mainly reflects that the concerns of socialized medicine (as is unfortunately the dominating feature in Sweden) carry greater weight than the number of patients cured.

This article from the Journal of Clinical Oncology (http://jco.ascopubs.org/cgi/content/full/26/1/6) reviews the most prominent results over the past 25 years. And Dr. Rose’s conclusion, after going through these is the right one : « This (…) makes it virtually medically undefendable not to treat patients with primary liver cancer or metastasizing kidney cell cancers. But in Sweden there is currently no connection between a possible treatment effect of new and costly medicines and the budgetary requirements of the concerned clinics. »

The defence rests.
CMPI

Center for Medicine in the Public Interest is a nonprofit, non-partisan organization promoting innovative solutions that advance medical progress, reduce health disparities, extend life and make health care more affordable, preventive and patient-centered. CMPI also provides the public, policymakers and the media a reliable source of independent scientific analysis on issues ranging from personalized medicine, food and drug safety, health care reform and comparative effectiveness.

Blog Roll

Alliance for Patient Access Alternative Health Practice
AHRP
Better Health
BigGovHealth
Biotech Blog
BrandweekNRX
CA Medicine man
Cafe Pharma
Campaign for Modern Medicines
Carlat Psychiatry Blog
Clinical Psychology and Psychiatry: A Closer Look
Conservative's Forum
Club For Growth
CNEhealth.org
Diabetes Mine
Disruptive Women
Doctors For Patient Care
Dr. Gov
Drug Channels
DTC Perspectives
eDrugSearch
Envisioning 2.0
EyeOnFDA
FDA Law Blog
Fierce Pharma
fightingdiseases.org
Fresh Air Fund
Furious Seasons
Gooznews
Gel Health News
Hands Off My Health
Health Business Blog
Health Care BS
Health Care for All
Healthy Skepticism
Hooked: Ethics, Medicine, and Pharma
Hugh Hewitt
IgniteBlog
In the Pipeline
In Vivo
Instapundit
Internet Drug News
Jaz'd Healthcare
Jaz'd Pharmaceutical Industry
Jim Edwards' NRx
Kaus Files
KevinMD
Laffer Health Care Report
Little Green Footballs
Med Buzz
Media Research Center
Medrants
More than Medicine
National Review
Neuroethics & Law
Newsbusters
Nurses For Reform
Nurses For Reform Blog
Opinion Journal
Orange Book
PAL
Peter Rost
Pharm Aid
Pharma Blog Review
Pharma Blogsphere
Pharma Marketing Blog
Pharmablogger
Pharmacology Corner
Pharmagossip
Pharmamotion
Pharmalot
Pharmaceutical Business Review
Piper Report
Polipundit
Powerline
Prescription for a Cure
Public Plan Facts
Quackwatch
Real Clear Politics
Remedyhealthcare
Shark Report
Shearlings Got Plowed
StateHouseCall.org
Taking Back America
Terra Sigillata
The Cycle
The Catalyst
The Lonely Conservative
TortsProf
Town Hall
Washington Monthly
World of DTC Marketing
WSJ Health Blog