Cost-effectiveness analysis of gemcitabine plus cisplatin versus docetaxel, cisplatin and fluorouracil for induction chemotherapy of locoregionally advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma

Cost-effectiveness of pembrolizumab versus chemotherapy in patients with platinum-pretreated, recurrent or metastatic nasopharyngeal cancer

BACKGROUND

Programmed cell death protein 1 (PD-1) monoclonal antibody, pembrolizumab, is a promising drug for platinum-pretreated, recurrent or metastatic nasopharyngeal cancer (NPC). We aimed to assess the cost-effectiveness of pembrolizumab compared with chemotherapy for Chinese patients in this NPC.

METHODS

The cost-effectiveness of pembrolizumab versus chemotherapy was evaluated using a partitioned survival model with a 5-year boundary. Efficacy and toxicity data were derived from the KEYNOTE-122 trials. Economic indicators including life-years (LYs), quality-adjusted life-years (QALYs), incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER), and lifetime cost were used. One-way analysis and probabilistic sensitivity analysis (PSA) were performed to explore the uncertainties. Additionally, various scenario analyses, including different pembrolizumab price calculations and discount rates were performed.

RESULTS

Pembrolizumab or chemotherapy alone respectively yielded 2.82 QALYs (3.96 LYs) and 2.73 QALYs (3.93 LYs) with an ICER of $422,535 per QALYs ($1,232,547 per LYs). This model was primarily influenced by the price of pembrolizumab. Furthermore, PSA indicated that pembrolizumab had none probability of being cost-effective compared with chemotherapy at a willingness-to- pay (WTP) of $38223. Scenario analyses revealed that irrespective of any potential price reduction or adjustments in the discount rate, no discernible impact on the ultimate outcome was observed.

CONCLUSION

Pembrolizumab was less cost-effective for patients with platinum-pretreated, recurrent or metastatic NPC compared with chemotherapy in China.

Neoadjuvant toripalimab combined with gemcitabine and cisplatin in resectable locally advanced head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (NeoTGP01): An open label, single-arm, phase Ib clinical trial

Background

Neoadjuvant programmed death receptor-1 (PD-1) inhibitors have drawn increasing attention in locally advanced head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC). In this study, we investigated the safety and efficacy of gemcitabine and cisplatin (GP), combined with a PD-1 inhibitor, in patients with locally advanced HNSCC.

Materials and methods

A total of 23 eligible patients were administered two cycles of toripalimab and GP followed by surgical resection. The primary endpoints were safety, treatment-related adverse events (TRAEs), and non-operation delay rates. The secondary endpoints consisted of pathological complete response (pCR) rate, major pathological response (MPR) rate, objective response rate (ORR), and R0 resection rate.

Results

The incidence of TRAEs from grades 1 to 4 was 43.5%, 34.8%, 13.0%, and 8.7%, respectively. Grade 3/4 TRAEs included neutropenia, fatigue, hyperglycemia, nausea and vomiting, decreased appetite, rash, and diarrhea. No treatment-related surgical delay was observed. The radiographic response rates were 5.0% (CR), 40.0% (PR), and 55.0% (SD). The ORR reached 45.0%. Eighteen patients underwent successful surgical resection. The R0 resection rate was 100%. The pathological response rates were 16.7% (pCR), 27.8% (MPR, two of five near-pCR), 16.7% (PPR), and 38.8% (NPR). CD4, CD8, CD20, and CD38 expression in the tumors significantly increased after neoadjuvant chemotherapy. The increase in CD20 levels after neoadjuvant treatment in patients with pCR/MPR was significantly higher than in patients with PPR/NPR.

Conclusion

Triweekly neoadjuvant toripalimab-GP is feasible and achieves promising pCR and MPR rates in patients with resectable locally advanced HNSCC.

Trial registration

Chinese clinical trial registry, ChiCTR2100043743, Registered 27 Febrary 2021- Retrospectively registered, http://www.chictr.org.cn/showproj.aspx?proj=120570

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s13046-022-02510-2.

Cost-effectiveness analysis of metronomic capecitabine as adjuvant chemotherapy in locoregionally advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma

Background

Adding metronomic capecitabine to concurrent chemoradiotherapy (CCRT) brings failure-free survival (FFS) benefits to patients with locoregionally advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC). This study assesses the cost-effectiveness of metronomic capecitabine in locoregionally advanced NPC.

Methods

We created a Markov model to calculate the expense and health outcomes of metronomic capecitabine compared to those observed in locoregionally advanced NPC. Related costs, like life-years (LYs), quality-adjusted life years (QALYs), and incremental cost-effective ratios (ICERs) were measured at a willingness-to-pay (WTP) threshold of $33,585 per QALY. A combination of different sensitivity analyses was used to test for model robustness. Additionally, a subgroup analysis was also performed.

Results

In contrast to what is observed in the locoregionally advanced NPC, adding the metronomic adjuvant capecitabine yielded an additional 1.11 QALYs with an incremental cost of $10,741.59, which obtained an ICER of $9,669.99 per QALY. The result of one-way sensitive analysis indicated that the utility of FFS, progression disease (PD), and the cost of follow-up were the most significant factors. The probability of metronomic capecitabine being cost-effective was 97.1% at a WTP of $33,585 per QALY.

Conclusion

Metronomic capecitabine as adjuvant chemotherapy is a cost-effective strategy for locoregionally advanced NPC patients.

Induction chemotherapy in locoregionally advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Background

Adding induction chemotherapy to concurrent platinum-based chemoradiotherapy has significantly prolonged the survival time of patients with locoregionally advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma. In this study, we intend to evaluate the survival outcomes, responses, and incidences of toxicities of induction chemotherapy and the differences between different strategies.

Methods

A comprehensive search was conducted in PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, and Cochrane CENTRAL on August 10, 2021. Single-arm or multi-arm prospective clinical trials on induction chemotherapy without targeted therapies or immune checkpoint inhibitors were included. Primary outcomes included survival outcomes, objective response rate, and disease control rate, and the secondary outcome was the rates of grade 3 or higher treatment-related adverse events.

Results

The 39 studies included in the systematic review and meta-analysis comprised 36 clinical trials and 5389 patients. The estimates for 3-year overall and fail-free survival rates were 87% and 77%. The estimates for 5-year rates of overall and fail-free survival were 81% and 73%. Gemcitabine plus platinum and docetaxel combined with 5-fluorouracil plus platinum strategies were associated with the highest rates of 3-year and 5-year overall survival. The objective response and disease control rates were 85% and 98% after the completion of induction chemotherapy. Neutropenia (27%) and nausea/vomiting (7%) were the most common grade 3 or higher treatment-related hematological and non-hematological adverse events during the induction phase.

Conclusions

Different induction chemotherapeutic strategies appear to have varying effects and risks; a comprehensive summary of the survival outcomes, responses, and toxicities in clinical trials may provide a crucial guide for clinicians.

MRI-based random survival Forest model improves prediction of progression-free survival to induction chemotherapy plus concurrent Chemoradiotherapy in Locoregionally Advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma

Background

The present study aimed to explore the application value of random survival forest (RSF) model and Cox model in predicting the progression-free survival (PFS) among patients with locoregionally advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma (LANPC) after induction chemotherapy plus concurrent chemoradiotherapy (IC + CCRT).

Methods

Eligible LANPC patients underwent magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan before treatment were subjected to radiomics feature extraction. Radiomics and clinical features of patients in the training cohort were subjected to RSF analysis to predict PFS and were tested in the testing cohort. The performance of an RSF model with clinical and radiologic predictors was assessed with the area under the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve (AUC) and Delong test and compared with Cox models based on clinical and radiologic parameters. Further, the Kaplan-Meier method was used for risk stratification of patients.

Results

A total of 294 LANPC patients (206 in the training cohort; 88 in the testing cohort) were enrolled and underwent magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans before treatment. The AUC value of the clinical Cox model, radiomics Cox model, clinical + radiomics Cox model, and clinical + radiomics RSF model in predicting 3- and 5-year PFS for LANPC patients was [0.545 vs 0.648 vs 0.648 vs 0.899 (training cohort), and 0.566 vs 0.736 vs 0.730 vs 0.861 (testing cohort); 0.556 vs 0.604 vs 0.611 vs 0.897 (training cohort), and 0.591 vs 0.661 vs 0.676 vs 0.847 (testing cohort), respectively]. Delong test showed that the RSF model and the other three Cox models were statistically significant, and the RSF model markedly improved prediction performance (P < 0.001). Additionally, the PFS of the high-risk group was lower than that of the low-risk group in the RSF model (P < 0.001), while comparable in the Cox model (P > 0.05).

Conclusion

The RSF model may be a potential tool for prognostic prediction and risk stratification of LANPC patients.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12885-022-09832-6.

Liquid biopsy posttreatment surveillance in endemic nasopharyngeal carcinoma: a cost-effective strategy to integrate circulating cell-free Epstein-Barr virus DNA

BACKGROUND

The optimal posttreatment surveillance strategy for nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) remains unclear. Circulating cell-free Epstein-Barr virus (cfEBV) DNA has been recognized as a promising biomarker to facilitate early detection of NPC recurrence. Therefore, we aim to determine whether integrating circulating cfEBV DNA into NPC follow-up is cost-effective.

METHODS

For each stage of asymptomatic nonmetastatic NPC patients after complete remission to primary NPC treatment, we developed a Markov model to compare the cost-effectiveness of the following surveillance strategies: routine follow-up strategy, i.e., (1) routine clinical physical examination; routine imaging strategies, including (2) routine magnetic resonance imaging plus computed tomography plus bone scintigraphy (MRI + CT + BS); and (3) routine 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT); cfEBV DNA-guided imaging strategies, including (4) cfEBV DNA-guided MRI + CT + BS and (5) cfEBV DNA-guided PET/CT. Clinical probabilities, utilities, and costs were derived from published studies or databases. Sensitivity analyses were performed.

RESULTS

For all disease stages, cfEBV DNA-guided imaging strategies demonstrated similar survival benefits but were considerably more economical than routine imaging strategies. They only required approximately one quarter of the number of imaging studies compared with routine imaging strategies to detect one recurrence. Specifically, cfEBV DNA-guided MRI + CT + BS was most cost-effective for stage II (incremental cost-effectiveness ratio [ICER] $57,308/quality-adjusted life-year [QALY]) and stage III ($46,860/QALY) patients, while cfEBV DNA-guided PET/CT was most cost-effective for stage IV patients ($62,269/QALY). However, routine follow-up was adequate for stage I patients due to their low recurrence risk.

CONCLUSIONS

The cfEBV DNA-guided imaging strategies are effective and cost-effective follow-up methods in NPC. These liquid biopsy-based strategies offer evidence-based, stage-specific surveillance modalities for clinicians and reduce disease burden for patients.

Cost-effectiveness of CYP2C19 genotyping to guide antiplatelet therapy for acute minor stroke and high-risk transient ischemic attack

Dual antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) with clopidogrel plus aspirin within 48 h of acute minor strokes and transient ischemic attacks (TIAs) has been indicated to effectively reduce the rate of recurrent strokes. However, the efficacy of clopidogrel has been shown to be affected by cytochrome P450 2C19 (CYP2C19) polymorphisms. Patients carrying loss-of-function alleles (LoFAs) at a low risk of recurrence (ESRS < 3) cannot benefit from clopidogrel plus aspirin at all and may have an increased bleeding risk. In order to optimize antiplatelet therapy for these patients and avoid the waste of medical resources, it is important to identify the subgroups that genuinely benefit from DAPT with clopidogrel plus aspirin through CYP2C19 genotyping. This study sought to assess the cost-effectiveness of CYP2C19 genotyping to guide drug therapy for acute minor strokes or high-risk TIAs in China. A decision tree and Markov model were constructed to evaluate the cost-effectiveness of CYP2C19 genotyping. We used a healthcare payer perspective, and the primary outcomes included quality-adjusted life years (QALYs), costs and the incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER). Sensitivity analyses were performed to evaluate the robustness of the results. CYP2C19 genotyping resulted in a lifetime gain of 0.031 QALYs at an additional cost of CNY 420.13 (US$ 59.85), yielding an ICER of CNY 13,552.74 (US$ 1930.59) per QALY gained. Probabilistic sensitivity analysis showed that genetic testing was more cost-effective in 95.7% of the simulations at the willingness-to-pay threshold of CNY 72,100 (GDP per capita, US$ 10,300) per QALY. Therefore, CYP2C19 genotyping to guide antiplatelet therapy for acute minor strokes and high-risk TIAs is highly cost-effective in China.

The Most Efficacious Induction Chemotherapy Regimen for Locoregionally Advanced Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma: A Network Meta-Analysis

Background

Induction chemotherapy (IC) followed by concurrent chemoradiotherapy (CCRT) for non-metastatic locoregionally advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) has gained considerable attention. However, the most efficacious IC regimens remain investigational. We aimed to compare the survival benefits of all available IC regimens followed by CCRT in this network meta-analysis.

Methods

All randomized-controlled trials of CCRT with or without IC in non-metastatic locoregionally advanced NPC were included, with an overall nine trials of 2,705 patients counted in the analysis. CCRT alone was the reference category. Eight IC regimens followed by CCRT were analyzed: docetaxel + cisplatin (DC), gemcitabine + carboplatin + paclitaxel (GCP), gemcitabine + cisplatin (GP), mitomycin + epirubicin + cisplatin + fluorouracil + leucovorin (MEPFL), cisplatin + epirubicin + paclitaxel (PET), cisplatin + fluorouracil (PF), cisplatin + capecitabine (PX) and cisplatin + fluorouracil (PF), cisplatin + capecitabine (PX). Fixed-effects frequentist network meta-analysis models was applied and P-score was used to rank the treatments.

Results

DC, GP, and PX were the top three IC regimens with the highest probability of benefit on overall survival (OS). Their corresponding hazard ratios (HRs) (95% CIs) compared with CCRT alone were of 0.24 (0.08–0.73), 0.43 (0.24–0.77), and 0.54 (0.27–1.09) and the respective P-scores were 94%, 82%, and 68%. The first three IC regimens showing significantly improved progression-free survival (PFS) were PX, followed by GP and DC with respective HRs of 0.46 (0.24–0.88), 0.51 (0.34–0.77), and 0.49 (0.20–1.20), and P-scores of 82%, 78%, and 74%. Among the studies in the intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) era, GP and PX were the best performed IC regimens, whilst DC performed the best among non-IMRT studies. Doublet and gemcitabine-based IC regimens had better survival benefits compared to triplet and taxane-based IC regimens, respectively.

Conclusions

Given its consistent superiority in both OS and PFS, DC, GP, and PX ranked among the three most efficacious IC regimens in both the overall and subgroup analysis of IMRT or non-IMRT studies. Exploratory analyses suggested that doublet and gemcitabine-based IC regimens showed better survival performance.

Comparison of efficacy and safety of three induction chemotherapy regimens with gemcitabine plus cisplatin (GP), cisplatin plus fluorouracil (PF) and cisplatin plus capecitabine (PX) for locoregionally advanced previously untreated nasopharyngeal carcinoma: A pooled analysis of two prospective studies

PURPOSE

We compared, in this pooled analysis, the differences in efficacy and safety between three induction chemotherapy regimens including gemcitabine plus cisplatin (GP), cisplatin plus fluorouracil (PF) and cisplatin plus capecitabine (PX) in patients recruited into our two prospective studies for previously untreated locoregionally advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC).

METHODS

GP, PF or PX followed by radical concurrent chemoradiotherapy was given to patients with previously untreated locoregionally advanced (stage III to IVA) NPC prospectively recruited into our two prospective studies. The study endpoints included progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS), locoregional recurrence-free survival (LRFS), distant metastasis-free survival (DMFS), cancer-specific survival (CSS), and major acute and late treatment-related toxicities (grade ≥ 3).

RESULTS

From 2006 to 2016, 278 patients were enrolled (84, 94 and 100 patients in GP, PF and PX group respectively). After a median follow-up of 80 months, the 3-year PFS, OS, LRFS, DMFS and CSS of the whole population were 78.7%, 88.1%, 84.9%, 80.9% and 89.8%, respectively. There were no significant differences in prespecified survival endpoints among GP, PF and PX in both stage III and stage IVA patients. GP had lower incidences of severe (grade ≥ 3) anemia and diarrhea in stage III patients, as well as severe anemia, dehydration, renal impairment and vomiting in stage IVA patients. The incidences of grade ≥ 3 late toxicities were similar among these 3 induction regimens.

CONCLUSION

GP had similar efficacy and potentially fewer treatment-related complications compared with PF and PX as induction chemotherapy for previously untreated locoregionally advanced NPC.

Real-World Cost-Effectiveness Analysis of Gemcitabine and Cisplatin Compared to Docetaxel and Cisplatin Plus Fluorouracil Induction Chemotherapy in Locoregionally Advanced Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma

Background

Addition of gemcitabine and cisplatin (GP) or docetaxel and cisplatin plus fluorouracil (TPF) to concurrent chemoradiotherapy (CCRT) significantly improved survival in locoregionally advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC). However, an economic evaluation of these regimens remains unknown. The purpose of this study is to compare the cost-effectiveness of GP versus TPF regimen in the treatment of locoregionally advanced NPC in China.

Materials and methods

A comprehensive Markov model was developed to evaluate the health and economic outcomes of GP versus TPF regimen for patients with locoregionally advanced NPC. Baseline and clinical outcome were derived from 158 patients with newly diagnosed stage III-IVA NPC between 2010 and 2015. We evaluated the quality-adjusted life-years (QALYs), costs, and incremental cost-effectiveness ratios (ICERs) from the perspective of the Chinese healthcare system. One-way sensitive analysis explored the impact of uncertainty in key model parameters on results, and probabilistic uncertainty was assessed through a Monte Carlo probabilistic sensitivity analysis.

Results

GP regimen provided an additional 0.42 QALYs with incremental cost of $3,821.99, resulting in an ICER of $9,099.98 per QALY versus TPF regimen at the real-world setting. One-way sensitivity analysis found that the results were most sensitive to the cost and proportion of receiving subsequent treatment in two groups. The probability that GP regimen being cost-effective compared with TPF regimen was 86.9% at a willingness-to-pay (WTP) of $31,008.16 per QALY.

Conclusion

Using real-world data, GP regimen was demonstrated a cost-effective alternative to TFP regimen for patients with locoregionally advanced NPC in China. It provides valuable evidence for clinicians when making treatment decisions to improve the cost-effectiveness of treatment.

Cost-Effectiveness of Tucatinib in Human Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor 2-Positive Metastatic Breast Cancer From the US and Chinese Perspectives

Background: The clinical evaluation of HER2CLIMB trial showed a 21. 9-month median overall survival with the triplet regimens of tucatinib, capecitabine, and trastuzumab (TXT) for patients with human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) –overexpressing metastatic breast cancer. From the payer's perspective of the United States and China, a cost-effectiveness analysis was conducted to evaluate the costs and benefits of adding tucatinib in this study.

Methods: We constructed a Markov model for the economic evaluation of adding tucatinib to trastuzumab plus capecitabine in patients with HER-2 positive metastatic breast cancer in the United States and China. The model was conducted with a 10-year time horizon, and the health status was divided into three states: progression-free survival, progressing disease, and death. The health utility scores were consistent with published literature with similar patient status. The transition probabilities were derived from the survival data of the HER2CLIMB study. The unit prices of medicines were obtained from the West China Hospital, Red Book, and published literature. Outcomes were measured in quality-adjusted life-years (QALYs), and incremental cost-effectiveness ratio, which robustness was evaluated by deterministic and probabilistic sensitivity analyses.

Results: Compared with the two-drug regimen of trastuzumab plus capecitabine (TX), the addition of tucatinib increased 0.21 QALY, with an increasing cost of $146,995.05 and $19,022.97 in the United States and China, respectively. The incremental cost-effectiveness ratios (ICERs) for the TXT versus TX was $699,976.43 in the U.S. and $90,585.57 in China, both of which are higher than their respective threshold of willingness to play. Deterministic sensitivity analysis shows that the price of tucatinib is the parameter that has the most significant impact on ICERs, but it does not change the results of the model. Probability sensitivity analysis shows that the probability of cost-effective for TXT is 0 in the base case.

Conclusion: In the United States and China, tucatinib combined with trastuzumab and capecitabine is not cost-effective for patients with HER-2 positive metastatic breast cancer.