Will the cost of cancer treatment begin to limit care?
In the past 25 years, the most rapid progress in cancer treatment has been for blood cell associated cancers such as leukemia & lymphoma. New treatments include the discovery of targeted therapies. For example, in the 1970s, only 41% of people with leukemia lived 5 years after diagnosis. In those diagnosed from 2006-2012, the 5-year survival rate has increased to over 70%.
Bloomberg News (1/6, Kresge) reports that a cultural fear of cancer in the US, “combined with prices that have surpassed $200,000 a year for revolutionary new treatments, is poised to give oncology medicines the biggest share of the $519 billion global pharmaceuticals market this year, eclipsing drugs for cardiovascular and metabolic diseases for the first time.” Although “drugmakers claim the revenue will propel innovation,” high costs are “stoking patients’ distress and creating a rift between manufacturers, health authorities and payers in many markets.”
https://treatcancer.com/blog/cost-of-cancer/
