Summaries of Must-Read Clinical Literature, Guidelines, and FDA Actions

How Much Does Liver Ca Treatment Cost?

Clin Gastroenterol Hepatol; ePub 2017 Jul 26; Kaplan, et al

Publish date:: August 24, 2017

Liver transplantation may be an expensive way to treat hepatocellular cancer (HCC), but it also increases survival time, according to an analysis of over 3,000 patients with HCC and nearly 13,000 controls. Details include the following:

3 years of treatment for HCC patients averaged $154,688, compared to $69,010 for matched control patients with cirrhosis.
Transplantation status, Barcelona Clinic Liver Cancer stage, and multivariable tumor board presentation predicted liver cancer related costs but these same variables were also associated with better survival.

Citation:

Kaplan DE, Chapko MK, Mehta R, et al. Healthcare costs related to treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma among veterans with cirrhosis in the United States. [Published online ahead of print July 26, 2017]. Clin Gastroenterol Hepatol. doi:10.1016/j.cgh.2017.07.024.

This Week's Must Reads

Younger adults present with more advanced esophageal adenocarcinoma,

PDAC: Tumor reduction after neoadjuvant therapy may predict postsurgical survival,

Endoscopic intragastric balloon improved NASH parameters,

Autologous fecal microbiota transplantation helped maintain weight loss after ‘green’ Mediterranean diet,

Cryoballoon, cryospray found equivalent for eradicating Barret’s esophagus,

Must Reads in GI Oncology

Younger adults present with more advanced esophageal adenocarcinoma,

PDAC: Tumor reduction after neoadjuvant therapy may predict postsurgical survival,

AGA clinical practice update: Pancreatic cancer screening,

Bariatric surgery may curtail colorectal cancer risk,

Molecularly guided therapy in pancreatic cancer: Untapped potential and the ‘bright future’ ahead,