Breast Cancer Awareness Month is October. It offers an opportunity to take stock of the progress we’ve made—and the work that remains. Reminding women to get screened matters. So does giving them clear information about symptoms and making sure that, when something looks suspicious, they can move quickly toward a diagnosis.
The cost of finding breast cancer late can be staggering–both in dollars and in years of life.
A new study by researchers at the National Cancer Institute and American Cancer Society found that, among Medicare beneficiaries, first-year oral prescription drug costs averaged roughly $700 for localized breast cancer—and about $25,000 after it had spread. Other cancer-attributable medical spending more than doubled after the disease had spread, from about $34,000 to more than $73,000.
Those figures underscore the enormous value of finding breast cancer sooner. Yet our health care system still makes timely screening and diagnosis harder than they should be.
First lady Melania Trump’s new women’s health initiative offers an opportunity to change that. The administration’s effort includes a focus on breast cancer screening and timely diagnostic follow-up. Achieving those goals will require greater patient freedom, less administrative friction, and fewer restrictions on competition.
Nothing contained in this blog is to be construed as necessarily reflecting the views of the Pacific Research Institute or as an attempt to thwart or aid the passage of any legislation.
Catching Breast Cancer Early Is Still Hard. Melania Trump Can Help
Sally C. Pipes
Breast Cancer Awareness Month is October. It offers an opportunity to take stock of the progress we’ve made—and the work that remains. Reminding women to get screened matters. So does giving them clear information about symptoms and making sure that, when something looks suspicious, they can move quickly toward a diagnosis.
The cost of finding breast cancer late can be staggering–both in dollars and in years of life.
A new study by researchers at the National Cancer Institute and American Cancer Society found that, among Medicare beneficiaries, first-year oral prescription drug costs averaged roughly $700 for localized breast cancer—and about $25,000 after it had spread. Other cancer-attributable medical spending more than doubled after the disease had spread, from about $34,000 to more than $73,000.
Those figures underscore the enormous value of finding breast cancer sooner. Yet our health care system still makes timely screening and diagnosis harder than they should be.
First lady Melania Trump’s new women’s health initiative offers an opportunity to change that. The administration’s effort includes a focus on breast cancer screening and timely diagnostic follow-up. Achieving those goals will require greater patient freedom, less administrative friction, and fewer restrictions on competition.
Read the entire op-ed here.
Nothing contained in this blog is to be construed as necessarily reflecting the views of the Pacific Research Institute or as an attempt to thwart or aid the passage of any legislation.