ArticleRadiotherapy and oncology : journal of the European Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology2015
The impact of radiotherapy costs on clinical outcomes in breast cancer.
Article in Radiotherapy and oncology : journal of the European Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology, 2015. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 6 papers.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
6 citing papers in PubMed, 16 citations in OpenAlex.
- Psychosocial interventions indicate prolonged survival in cancer patients in a systematic review, meta-analysis, and multiverse meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.Communications psychology · 2026Article
- Economic burden of breast cancer: a case of Southern Iran.Cost effectiveness and resource allocation : C/E · 2023Article
- Healthcare costs and utilization associated with pain among breast cancer survivors: a propensity score matched cohort study using SEER-Medicare data.Journal of cancer survivorship : research and practice · 2023Article
- Comparative cost-effectiveness of radiotherapy among older women with hormone receptor positive early-stage breast cancer.Expert review of pharmacoeconomics & outcomes research · 2022Article
- The continuum of breast cancer care and outcomes in the U.S. Military Health System: an analysis by benefit type and care source.Journal of cancer survivorship : research and practice · 2018Article
- Importance of cost-effectiveness and value in cancer care and healthcare policy.Journal of surgical oncology · 2016Review
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
7 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
background and purposeIn cost-effective healthcare systems, the cost of services should parallel patient complexity or quality of care. The purpose of this study was to determine whether the cost of radiotherapy correlates with patient-related outcomes among a large cohort of breast cancer patients treated with adjuvant breast radiation. MATERIALS AND
methods23,127 women with non-metastatic breast cancer undergoing radiotherapy after breast conservation surgery were identified from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results database from 2000 to 2009. Medicare reimbursements were used as a proxy for cost of radiotherapy, and Medicare claims were examined to identify local toxicities, and breast cancer-related endpoints. The impact of cost on these outcomes was studied with multivariable Fine-Gray models to account for competing risks.
resultsThe median cost (and interquartile range) of a course of breast radiation was $8100 ($6700-9700). Increased radiation costs were not associated with the occurrence of treatment-related toxicities (all p-values>0.05), ipsilateral breast recurrence (p=0.55), or breast cancer-related mortality (p=0.55).
conclusionHigher costs for adjuvant radiation in breast cancer were not associated with a decreased risk of patient-related outcomes suggesting inefficiency in Medicare reimbursements. Future efforts should focus on prospective evaluation of alternative payment models for radiotherapy.
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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.