The high cost of a breast cancer drug Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

The high cost of a breast cancer drug - Essay Example (3). Evidence from studies show that the essential benefit derived from Tykerb is that it doubles the time required for the progression of the disease. What this means is that women pay a high price for delaying the progress of the disease by a few months, with no hope of a cure. (4). This high cost of drug therapy for women with breast cancer repeats itself as we examine another recent drug introduction for the treatment of breast cancer. The drug Avastin has been in use in the treatment of some other forms of cancer, and has recently received FDA approval for its use in the treatment of breast cancer. Through this approval it is estimated that its use would increase involving about 43,000 women found suitable for its use. These women are however going to pay a high cost for this treatment. The annual cost involved in the use of Avastin would be to the tune of $ 92,000. Women with an annual family income would have to pay $ 55,000 for the Avastin drug regimen for a year. The pharmaceutical company involved Genentech makes the oft repeated claim in support of high cost of drugs and that is the recovery of investment in research for the drug. If drug treatment of breast cancer is to be so expensive, then many women are going to be denied the benefits of drug development for the treatment of breast cancer. (5). The use of Avastin in the treatment of breast cancer virtually means an escalation in cost by as much as four times the other adjuvant drug treatments. This is an example of the enhanced costs of the newer drugs that are coming into the market for the treatment of breast cancer. Limited finances available for spending on the treatment of breast cancer in women, which means that with the high costs of drugs in the treatment of breast cancer many women are going to be denied the benefits of drug therapy in the treatment of cancer. Patients denied the treatment will simply have to be told they cannot be given the better drugs, useful in