Ruth Kieran, Maeve Hennessy, Kate Coakley, Hazel O'Sullivan, Tim Cronin, Daire Lynch, Eibhlin Mulroe, Katie Cooke, Dearbhaile Collins, Seamus O'Reilly
A combination of improvements in patient survival, increasing treatment duration, and the development of more expensive agents has led to a doubling of per-capita spending on cancer medicines in Ireland (2008-2018). Despite this, access to new drugs is poor in comparison to other EU countries. We examine methods to optimise oncology drug spending to facilitate access to newer anticancer agents. Key targets for spending optimisation (biosimilar use, clinical trials and expanded access programs, waste reduction, avoidance of futile treatment, and altered drug scheduling) were identified through an exploratory analysis...
April 3, 2024: Irish Journal of Medical Science