Shariat - Figure 3
Disease Costs and Management Opportunities
FIG. 3: Bladder cancer not only affects the lives of patients and their families, it is also a major socioeconomic burden. It is one of the most expensive cancers to treat per lifetime per patient.[1,2] This is due to many factors, including frequency of cystoscopies and a high rate of recurrence, specifically in non-muscle-invasive (NMI) bladder cancer, with T1-stage cancer being the main cost driver.
Over the past 30 years there has been little improvement in the natural history and outcomes of bladder cancer. So how can we, as healthcare practitioners, do better?
- One reason for the lack of improvement is certainly the limited awareness and attention that this disease has received.
- A second reason is that the current diagnostics are not effective or cost-effective.
- Number three is that our current therapies are not effective or cost-effective. We need to do better in creating a personalized approach to diagnosis and treatment of T1 bladder cancer.
- Number four, our current follow-up is not effective or cost-effective. Here as well we need to do better, and other talks in this publicaiton will discuss that and the role of urinary biomarkers.
- And number five, there have been insufficient new developments in this specialty, although now there are some that will change the way that we take care of these patients.
References
Leal J, Luengo-Fernandez R, Sullivan R, Witjes JA. Economic burden of bladder cancer across the European Union. Eur Urol. 2016;69:438−47 http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.eururo.2015.10.024
Sievert KD, Amend B, Nagele U, et al. Economic aspects of bladder cancer: what are the benefits and costs? World J Urol. 2009;27:295−300 https://dx.doi.org/10.1007%2Fs00345-009-0395-z
