In a new study, researchers found More than 1.2 million people in the US prevented facing death following a cancer diagnosis, between the year 2000 and 2016, thanks to ever-improving treatment options.
They reported how new drugs commissioned during this period to target the 15 most common cancer types helped to reduce mortality by 24% per 100,000 people in the States.
They also showed that 106 new treatments were approved across these 15 most common tumors—including colorectal cancer, lung cancer, breast cancer, non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, leukemia, melanoma, gastric cancer, and renal cancer.
These new cancer drug approvals were linked to big decreases in deaths—as measured by treatment stocks.
The research was conducted by a team at PRECISIONheor and Pfizer.
In 2016 alone, the team estimates that new treatments were associated with 156,749 fewer cancer deaths for the 15 most common tumor types.
Across the 16 years, this mortality figure was down by 1,291,769, whilst the following cancers were also reduced significantly:
Breast cancer—127,874
Colorectal—46,705
Lung—375,256
Prostate—476,210
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma -48,836
The findings highlight how drugs prescribed are having a huge effect; with the mortality changes largest in prevalent tumor types with relatively more drug approvals: lung cancer, breast cancer, melanoma, lymphoma and leukemia.
Whilst mortality rates were down across many cancers, estimated deaths were up by 825 in people with thyroid cancer, and 7,768 for those with bladder cancer.
The study explains these rises are likely due to the result of sparse drug approvals during this period: five for thyroid cancer and three for bladder cancer.
These findings can help contribute to a better understanding of whether increased spending on cancer drugs is worth the investment.
The results demonstrate that the result of successful investment—i.e., new cancer therapy approvals—generates significant benefits to patients.
The authors now call for future research to evaluate the link between drug approvals and cancer mortality post-2016.
One author of the study is Dr. Joanna MacEwan, from PRECISIONheor.
The study is published in the Journal of Medical Economics.
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