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Revised: Thyrotropin Alfa Provides Equal or Improved Quality of Life to Thyroid Cancer Patients as Epoetin Does in Anemic Cancer Patients, at Decreased Cost: Presented at ENDO 2006

The following DG Dispatch has been revised from a previous version.

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By Maria Bishop

BOSTON, MA -- July 7, 2006 -- A recent study in thyroid cancer patients demonstrated that by avoiding the signs and symptoms of hypothyroidism, recombinant human thyrotropin (rhTSH) -- also known as thyrotropin alfa -- provides equal or improved health-related quality of life impact to patients as compared to epoetin alfa (used in chemotherapy-induced anemia), according to a presentation here at the Endocrine Society's 88^th Annual Meeting (ENDO 2006).

This clinical benefit of thyrotropin alfa also comes at a lower cost for an equivalent time period compared to epoetin in their respective indications, the researchers noted.

This study, led by Jason C. Cole, PhD, senior consulting researcher, QualityMetric, Lincoln, Rhode Island, developed a novel approach to compare data obtained with the short-form 36 (SF-36) questionnaire for thyrotropin alfa and epoetin alfa (used in disparate cancer patient groups), using aggregate data from published findings for each of the medications.

Based on meta-analysis techniques, the researchers compared health-related quality-of-life effect sizes and their standard errors. Cost data were then garnered from published governmental sources across 4 countries.

Analyses indicated that thyrotropin alfa has a greater impact in preventing a decrease in health-related quality-of-life than epoetin does in patient populations with a similar disease-related health-related quality-of-life burden.

Effect sizes for thyrotropin alfa on Physical and Mental Composite Scores were 4.0- and 8.3-times larger than for epoetin alfa, respectively. Although the health-related quality-of-life impact was greater, the team noted that the cost of thyrotropin alfa was less than that of epoetin alfa in the USA, Canada, Germany, and France, when comparing equivalent treatment periods. Expense difference ranged from 1.9 (USA) to 3.1 (Germany) times more expensive for epoetin for 6 weeks of health-related quality-of-life improvement.

The team concluded that there is a discrepancy in the cost-benefit ratio for these 2 medications, based on their similar health-related quality of life effects.

Thyrotropin alfa is used for the management of thyroid-cancer patients, and its effect has been compared to the traditional alternative of temporary thyroid-hormone withdrawal.


[Presentation title: A Comparison of Thyrotropin Alfa and Epoetin Alfa: Impact to Cancer Patients and Costs. Abstract 618]

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