Table 2.
Cost estimates and AE incidences
| Unit cost (US$) | Recommended dosage/frequency | Cost per month (30 days) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Drug therapy costs | |||
| Sorafenib | 1888 (60a 200 mg) | 400 mg twice per day | 3777 |
| FOLFOX4 | ≈ 2.14 treatment cycles per month | 1865 | |
| Oxaliplatin | 290 (50 mg) | 138 mg per cycle | 1716 |
| 5 FU | 8 (400 mg) | 3247 mg per cycle | 132 |
| LV | 16 (1225 mg) | 649 mg per cycle | 18 |
| Unit cost (US$) | Incidence | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Sorafenib | FOLFOX4 | ||
| Other medical costs | |||
| General warda | 8/day | / | 5 days per cycle |
| Testsb | 155/set | Once per month | Once per cycle |
| Adverse event | Cost/event | ||
| Nausea + vomiting | 65 | 11.4% | 41.0% |
| Abnormal | |||
| AST/ALT values | 59 | 0.0% | 31.7% |
| Alopecia | 0 | 24.8% | 0.0% |
| Anorexia | 26 | 12.8% | 26.8% |
| Bilirubin | 349 | 0.0% | 20.2% |
| Fatigue | 3 | 20.1% | 17.5% |
| Diarrhea | 13 | 25.5% | 15.9% |
| Sensory neuropathy | 3 | 0.0% | 15.3% |
| HFSR | 4 | 45.0% | 0.0% |
| Rash | 7 | 20.1% | 0.0% |
| Hypertension | 37 | 18.8% | 0.0% |
| Bone marrow suppression | 79 | 0.0% | 68.9% |
aOnly the hospitalization bed fee was counted, as other medical costs during hospitalization have been considered in the model
bTests included abdominal ultrasound, MRI, hematological examination, and liver and kidney function. The tests with similar frequency for the two therapies were not included, e.g., TC tests with costs of US$ 310, which were performed once bi-monthly for each therapy