Abstract
Background: Vedolizumab (VDZ) and infliximab are used to treat moderate to severe ulcerative colitis (UC). The choice of the drug to use at first-line is often based on a combination of clinical and economic factors. The cost of treatment pathway is rarely considered. Therefore, this cost-consequence analysis (CCA) investigated the overall costs of treatment pathway for vedolizumab followed by infliximab (VDZ → IFX) compared to infliximab followed by vedolizumab (IFX → VDZ).
Methods: We used a published cost-consequence model (CCM), based on a targeted literature search reporting the time-on-treatment data for vedolizumab or infliximab in UC in first and second-line of treatment. CCM time horizon was defined by the length of treatment sequences. Considering the Italian hospital perspective, the CCA evaluated the biologic drugs acquisition costs, drug administration costs, hospitalization costs, switch costs, colectomy costs and third-line treatment costs. Third-line options included colectomy, tofacitinib, ustekinumab or dose escalation of second-line biologic.
Results: Over the 5.2-year time horizon (duration of the longer VDZ → IFX pathway), the mean cost per patient of VDZ → IFX pathway was slightly lower than the mean cost per patient of IFX → VDZ pathway (€ 86,339 vs 89,636). The CCM predicted that using VDZ as first-line treatment delayed the time to costly third-line therapies compared to first-line using IFX (VDZ-first-line median time-on-treatment 3.6-years and IFX-second-line 1.6-years; IFX-first-line 1.4-years and VDZ-second-line 2.3-years and third-line 1.5-years).
Conclusion: The CCA showed that a biologic treatment pathway that begins with first-line vedolizumab is not more expensive than one beginning with first-line infliximab and delayed the time to costly third-line.