In China, a new treatment for lung cancer is gaining attention. Penpulimab, a type of drug known as a PD-1 monoclonal antibody, is being used alongside paclitaxel and carboplatin. This combination is showing promise for patients with a specific type of lung cancer called squamous non-small cell lung cancer (sqNSCLC). This research digs into whether this new ...
Seizure disorders, including epilepsy, are a significant drain on healthcare resources. These conditions demand a lot of medical attention and money. The ALVEEG trial is stepping in to address this issue. It's all about finding a better way to manage these disorders using outpatient ambulatory long-term video electroencephalograms (ALVEEGs). This approach could chang...
Kidney transplants are a lifeline for many, but they come with their own set of challenges. One of these is the risk of graft failure, which is higher in recipients with high-normal lead levels. This is where chelation therapy comes in. Chelation therapy, using a compound called meso-2, 3-dimercaptosuccinic acid (DMSA), is designed to remove lead from the body. The i...
Imagine trying to use a map from the 1950s to navigate a city today. It wouldn't work, right? The same goes for health-related quality of life (HRQoL) value sets. These sets help figure out how many quality-adjusted life years (QALYs) people might gain from healthcare. But, many of these value sets are old and outdated. This is a problem because they might not r...
First things first, let's zoom out and look at the big picture. When we talk about the economic side of mental health, especially for new moms and babies, things can get tricky. Usually, studies only look at the immediate costs and benefits from a single person's point of view. This can lead to a big miss on the true value of helping moms and babies. Now, let's focu...
Have you ever wondered how any country decides which flu vaccine works best for elderly people? It's not as easy as it sounds. For Spain, there's been a bunch of new vaccines in the past few years. In an effort understand if these vaccines are actually worth money spent on them, health decision-makers depend on something called cost-effective study. The purpose of th...
Ever wondered how a country decides the price of new medicines? Spain has been working on an update to how it evaluates and prices drugs for its National Health System (NHS). They've got a plan that stretches from 2019 to 2024. The Advisory Committee on Pharmaceutical Financing (CAPF) has shared some recommendations to make this process more efficient and fair. Firs...
When it comes to foodborne illnesses (FBI), the economic damage can be huge, especially in developed countries. One of the biggest hits is the loss of productivity. This happens when people miss work because they're sick, aren't as efficient when they do work, or have long-term health problems that keep them from working. To figure out how much this costs, economist...
Health economics is all about making smart healthcare choices based on facts. One of its superpowers is economic evaluations. These help us compare how much healthcare treatments cost with how well they work. The main goal is to help healthcare professionals and policymakers make better decisions. This is the first part of a series that makes these big ideas simpler....
In the ever-evolving world of hospital medicine, decisions about adopting or dropping medical interventions are crucial. These choices span a wide range, from tests and treatments to entire care models. Traditionally, the focus has been on the direct impact on patient outcomes, benefits, and potential harms. However, as resources become more limited, it's essential t...