Economic Analysis of Blood Product Transfusions According to the Treatment of Acute Myeloid Leukaemia in the Elderly

Completed

Brief Summary: Blood transfusion requirement represents one of the most significant cost driver associated with acute myeloid leukemia (AML). In addition to an increase prevalence of co morbidities in older patients, AML in older patients is more often associated with adverse features than in younger adults. Physicians might therefore decide to offer palliative or supportive care rather than intensive chemotherapy. An alternative treatment could be low-intensity therapy, such as LD-AraC or hypomethylating agents, which demonstrated better results than only Best Supportive care (BSC). Blood transfusion requirement represents one of the most significant cost driver associated with AML.

The present study assesses the cost-effectiveness of intensive chemotherapy versus Best Supportive Care (BSC) versus alternative therapies (hypomethylating agents, low-dose cytosine arabinoside (LD-AraC), or other investigational drugs) in elderly patients aged 70 years or older regarding blood product transfusions from a French payer perspective. Intensive chemotherapy and BSC were the comparators in this analysis, since they continue to represent the most commonly used treatment for elderly AML according to the defined status of patients considered as 'fit' or 'unfit' for intensive chemotherapy.

Recruitment & Eligibility

Inclusion Criteria

Age ≥ 70 years old
AML according to the World Health Organization (WHO) criteria (% of blasts ≥ 20% in bone marrow aspiration).
All FAB subtypes.
Any type of AML (de novo or secondary)
All participants to clinical trials gave their written informed consent

Exclusion Criteria

Arm && Interventions

Group	Intervention	Description
Lower-intensity treatments	Transfusion	The second study group comprised 70 patients who were treated on frontline by lower-intensity treatments \[LD-AraC(39 patients), azacitidine (16 patients), decitabine (11 patients),tipifarnib (3 patients), or ATRA (1 patient)\]. Patients received LD-AraC 20 mg once or twice daily (according to physician'schoice) by subcutaneous injection for 10 consecutive days. Azacitidine was given at the dose of 75 mg/m2/day for 7 consecutive days by sc injection. Decitabine was administered by intravenous route once daily at 20 mg/m2 for 5 consecutive days. Tipifarnib was given at 600 mg administered orally twice daily for 21 consecutive days in 4-week cycles. ATRA was given at 45 mg/m2until CR achievement followed by maintenance combining 6-mercaptopurine with methotrexate.
Best Supportive Care	Transfusion	The last study group comprises 76 patients: 31 patients received supportive care, while 36 patients also received hydroxyurea and 9 patients received 6-mercaptopurine.
Intensive chemotherapy	Transfusion	First group: 68 patients receiving a combination of intermediate-dose cytarabine and an anthracycline. One patient with acute promyelocytic leukaemia (APL) also received all-trans retinoic acid (ATRA).

Primary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
Estimation of mean blood product transfusions costs (in euros) per patient according to overall survival	From starting treatment to death from any cause (up to 21 months)	The cost-effectiveness of blood product transfusion was determined among initial treatment subgroups: patients receiving intensive chemotherapy, patients receiving low-intensity treatments, and patients treated only by BSC.

Secondary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
Complete remission (CR) rate	Duration of study (Month 21)	Complete remission (CR) was defined by bone marrow aspiration, which was required to consist of more than 50% normal cellularity with evidence of trilineage maturation and less than 5% bone marrow blasts, no evidence of extramedullary disease, and regeneration of the peripheral neutrophil count to 1.0 × 109/L and the platelet count to 100 × 109/L. The persistence of myelodysplastic features did not exclude the diagnosis of CR.
Number of blood product transfusions per patient	Duration of study (Month 21)	Decisions concerning transfusion indications were based on institutional policy and the clinical judgment of treating physicians. Transfusion practice was consistent during the period of study. Prophylactic transfusions were consistently given at morning platelet counts of \< 20 ×109/L and haemoglobin level \< 80 g/L. Protocol Blood products were leukoreduced through discarding the buffy coat and administered through a standard 140 to 170 µm blood filter but were not irradiated

Locations (1): Hospices Civils de Lyon - Centre Hospitalier Lyon Sud, 165 Chemin du Grand Revoyet
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Pierre-benite, France