Health-care services utilization and costs associated with radical cystectomy for bladder cancer: a descriptive population-based study in the province of Quebec, Canada

BACKGROUND Bladder cancer (BC) has the highest lifetime treatment costs per patient of all cancers. The objective of this study was to characterize the use of health-care services and costs associated with BC among patients who underwent radical cystectomy (RC) in the province of Quebec. METHODS We conducted a descriptive study in a retrospective cohort of patients who underwent RC for BC between 2000 and 2009. Data was obtained from two health administrative databases (RAMQ and ISQ). We calculated average costs per patient and total costs in 2014 Canadian dollars for the following components of costs: 1) Pre-surgery costs (pre and post-urologist consultations, urologist consultations, cystoscopies, TURBTs, imaging procedures); 2) Costs of radical cystectomy and 3) Post-surgery costs (urologist consultations, post-operative consultations, medical oncologist consultations, imaging procedures and post-operative complication management). ARIMA models were used to evaluate trends in average costs per patient over the study period. RESULTS Among 2759 patients included in the study (75% men), average pre-surgery costs, RC costs, and post-surgery costs were estimated at 3762$, 18979$ and 4770$, respectively. RC cost was responsible for 69% of total costs, followed by post-operative consultations (7.8%), post-operative complications and TURBTs (6% of total costs, each). Academic hospitals performed RC at a lower average cost, compared to community hospitals (difference of $1000, p < .0001). A decreased trend in post-surgery costs was detected in the year 2009. CONCLUSIONS Costs of RC, TURBT, consultations and post-operative complications were the most important economic components of total RC cost per patient in Quebec. Academic hospitals performed RC at a lower cost, compared to community hospitals.