Economic impact of multigene panel testing for hereditary breast and ovarian cancer

Abstract

Aim: Healthcare utilization and costs were compared following 25-gene panel (panel) or single syndrome (SS) testing for hereditary breast and ovarian cancer. Materials methods: Retrospective cohort study of patients unaffected by cancer with panel (n = 6359) or SS (n = 4681) testing for hereditary breast and ovarian cancer (01 January 2014 to 31 December 2016). Groups were determined by test type and result (positive, negative, variant of uncertain significance [VUS]). Results: There were no differences in total unadjusted healthcare costs between the panel (US14,425) and SS (US14,384) groups (p = 0.942). Among VUS patients in the panel and SS groups, mean all-cause costs were US14,404 versus US20,607 (p = 0.361) and mean risk-reduction/early detection-specific costs were US718 versus US679 (p = 0.890), respectively. Adjusted medical costs were not significantly different between panel and SS cohorts. Conclusion: Healthcare utilization and costs were comparable between the SS and panel tests overall and for patients with VUS.