Out-of-Pocket Cost Modeling of Adjuvant Antiestrogen and Radiation Therapy After Lumpectomy for Early-Stage Breast Cancer Across Medicaid and Medicare Plans.

Purpose: The optimal adjuvant therapy (antiestrogen therapy [ET] + radiation therapy or ET alone, or in some reports radiation therapy alone) in older women with early-stage breast cancer has been highly debated. However, granular details on the role of insurance in the out-of-pocket cost for patients receiving ET with or without radiation therapy are lacking. This project disaggregates out-of-pocket costs by insurance plans to increase treatment cost transparency.

Out-of-Pocket Cost Modeling of Adjuvant Radiation Therapy Duration in Standard-of-Care Early Stage Breast Cancer Treatment Across Medicaid and Medicare Plans.

Purpose: For early stage breast cancer (BC), the choice of radiation therapy duration (1 vs 3 weeks) is highly debated. Cost and financial toxicity are major concerns that patients with BC face. Nonetheless, there remain limited discussions providing granular details of the role of insurance in the aggregate cost of 1 week versus 3 weeks of radiation therapy for patients.