Patients with thyroid cancer may experience greater financial challenges compared to those with other common cancers, a recent review suggests.
Researchers found, for instance, that patients with thyroid cancer had higher total yearly healthcare expenditures, on average, compared to patients with other types of cancer ($9585 vs $5830), and rates of bankruptcy were higher.
The review was published online May 5 in JAMA Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery.
Research on the costs associated with cancer care indicate that thyroid cancer, in particular, comes with a significant financial burden for patients and survivors.
In the current review, Benjamin James, MD, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, and colleagues evaluated all known studies on the financial burden of thyroid cancer to capture the evidence to date and identify knowledge gaps.
Among the studies included, James and co-authors found that estimates of the out-of-pocket costs for thyroid cancer diagnosis and treatment varied considerably, from $1425 to as high as $17,000 in the first year after being diagnosed. Medical debt associated with thyroid cancer care varied from about 2% to almost 19%.
These costs were influenced by a range of factors, including cancer stage, health insurance coverage, and age. For instance, patients who underwent total
