Background: Two thirds (62%) of metastatic breast cancer (MBC) patients in Western Europe have human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-negative disease, for which anthracyclines and taxanes are recommended as first-line treatments, followed by microtubule-targeting agents such as capecitabine, vinorelbine and/or eribulin. The study objective was to compare the cost-effectiveness of eribulin in Spain as a second-line treatment for HER2-negative MBC with its current status as a third-line treatment for patients who have received capecitabine.
Methods: A Markov model was developed from the perspective of the Spanish healthcare system. The model had three health states: Stable; Progression and Death. In Stable, patients received eribulin or: capecitabine and vinorelbine for HER2-negative patients; primary treatment of physician’s choice (TPC) for post-capecitabine patients. In Progression, all patients received secondary TPC. Model inputs were overall survival, progression-free survival and costs relating to chemotherapies, grade 3/4 adverse events and healthcare utilization. Sensitivity analyses were conducted to identify uncertainty.
Results: As second-line treatment, Eribulin was associated with a greater incremental benefit in life years (LYs) and quality-adjusted life years (QALYs) than capecitabine and vinorelbine. Erubilin as third-line treatment was associated with greater benefit in life years (LYs) and QALYs than TPC. The incremental cost-effectiveness ratios (ICERs) for eribulin were higher in the second-line than the third-line setting in terms of LYs (€35,149 versus €24,884) and QALYs (€37,152 versus €35,484). In both settings, deterministic sensitivity analyses demonstrated that the ICER is most sensitive to the eribulin price.
Conclusion: Eribulin is cost-effective as second-line treatment for HER2-negative MBC patients in Spain; albeit, slightly less so than as third-line treatment for MBC patients who have received capecitabine (an ICER per QALY difference of €1,668). This difference may fall within the margin of error for the model and could potentially be addressed by a minor reduction in the eribulin price.
Efficacy and safety of eribulin as first- to third-line treatment in patients with advanced or metastatic breast cancer previously treated with anthracyclines and taxanes