In 2018, dosing regimens of the two most prescribed immune check point inhibitors (ICI), nivolumab (Opdivo®) and pembrolizumab (Keytruda®), in the treatment of lung cancer were changed from weight-based dosing to fixed dosing. The aim of this study was to compare the economic impact of this change in our university hospital group and then across Ile-de-France, the most inhabited French region. A budget impact analysis (BIA) has been performed on the French public health insurance data. The duration of treatment and the weight of the patients were calculated using data from the patients treated at our health facility and from clinical studies. The cost of treatment was calculated at the local level of our health facility and then for Ile-de-France. Our model demonstrates an additional cost of €550,115 in our hospital and €9,704,778 in Ile-de-France for a fixed dose prescription in 2018. In 2019, the BIA concluded an additional cost, according to the respective low and high assumptions, of €556,969 and €756,544 locally and € 10,201,027 to €14,486,141 for Ile-de-France for an equivalent efficacy between the two different drug dosing regimens of nivolumab and pembrolizumab. The adoption of the fixed dose regimen would lead, according to the least expensive hypothesis, to an additional cost of 26% for the ICI. These results encourage reflection on the strict adoption of this dosage modification. The option of maintaining the free choice between a prescription adapted to weight or in a fixed dose seems a relevant option and should be considered.
Keywords: budget impact analysis; cancer immunotherapy; fixed dose; lung cancer; nivolumab; pembrolizumab.