Omar Dzaye1, Henrik Bødtker2, Cara Reiter-Brennan3, Michael J Blaha4, Martin Bødtker Mortensen5. 1. The Johns Hopkins Ciccarone Center for the Prevention of Cardiovascular Disease, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Md; Russell H. Morgan Department of Radiology and Radiological Science, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Md; Department of Radiology and Neuroradiology, Charité, Berlin, Germany. 2. Institute of Clinical Medicine, Aarhus University Hospital, Aarhus, Denmark. 3. The Johns Hopkins Ciccarone Center for the Prevention of Cardiovascular Disease, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Md; Department of Radiology and Neuroradiology, Charité, Berlin, Germany. 4. The Johns Hopkins Ciccarone Center for the Prevention of Cardiovascular Disease, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Md. 5. The Johns Hopkins Ciccarone Center for the Prevention of Cardiovascular Disease, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Md; Department of Cardiology, Aarhus University Hospital, Aarhus, Denmark. Electronic address: martin.bodtker.mortensen@clin.au.dk.
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Cancer and cardiovascular disease are the 2 leading causes of death in most developed countries, making up the majority of national health care expenditures. In this study, we investigated nationwide trends of cardiovascular disease and cancer drug expenditure in relation to concomitant trends in cardiovascular disease and cancer death rates. METHODS: We obtained cardiovascular and cancer drug expenditure data in Denmark through the Danish Register of Medical Product Statistics. Trends in cancer deaths and cardiovascular disease deaths were observed by linkage to the cancer statistics for the Nordic Countries and Danish Heart Foundation databases. RESULTS: Our data show that introduction and rapid uptake of generic versions of most cardiovascular disease drugs have resulted in a remarkable cost-neutral development in cardiovascular disease drug expenditure from 1995 to 2018 despite increased drug use. This development is contrasted to cancer drug expenditure, which has increased more than 15-fold in the same period. Since 2006, expenditure for cancer drugs has exceeded that for cardiovascular disease drugs and is now more than triple that cost. However, death rates for cancer have dropped a fraction as much as for cardiovascular disease. CONCLUSION: Our results point to a disproportionate high mortality-adjusted expenditure for cancer drugs compared to cardiovascular disease drugs and demonstrate an enormous potential for national health care savings when cheaper versions like biosimilars of many cancer drugs are introduced.
BACKGROUND:Cancer and cardiovascular disease are the 2 leading causes of death in most developed countries, making up the majority of national health care expenditures. In this study, we investigated nationwide trends of cardiovascular disease and cancer drug expenditure in relation to concomitant trends in cardiovascular disease and cancer death rates. METHODS: We obtained cardiovascular and cancer drug expenditure data in Denmark through the Danish Register of Medical Product Statistics. Trends in cancer deaths and cardiovascular disease deaths were observed by linkage to the cancer statistics for the Nordic Countries and Danish Heart Foundation databases. RESULTS: Our data show that introduction and rapid uptake of generic versions of most cardiovascular disease drugs have resulted in a remarkable cost-neutral development in cardiovascular disease drug expenditure from 1995 to 2018 despite increased drug use. This development is contrasted to cancer drug expenditure, which has increased more than 15-fold in the same period. Since 2006, expenditure for cancer drugs has exceeded that for cardiovascular disease drugs and is now more than triple that cost. However, death rates for cancer have dropped a fraction as much as for cardiovascular disease. CONCLUSION: Our results point to a disproportionate high mortality-adjusted expenditure for cancer drugs compared to cardiovascular disease drugs and demonstrate an enormous potential for national health care savings when cheaper versions like biosimilars of many cancer drugs are introduced.