The mean cost of skin-cancer related care over a 1 year period was significantly higher in transplant recipients than their nonimmunosuppressed counterparts (TR: $9,069 vs Control: $1,796).
Clinical Pearls
The mean costs of skin-cancer related care over a 1 year period was significantly higher in transplant recipients than their nonimmunosuppressed counterparts (TR: $9,069 vs Control: $1,796)
The authors suggest transplant providers consider using tools to risk assess patients and guide dermatology referrals such as the SUNTRAC calculator available at https://www.itscc.org/patients.
Discussion:
While there have been numerous studies citing an increased risk of developing skin cancer in transplant recipients, the authors of this study aimed to better understand how the costs of skin-cancer related care are different in transplant recipients when compared to their nonimmunosuppressed counterparts. Using a registry of cutaneous squamous cell carcinomas treated at Brigham and Women’s Hospital from 2015 to 2022, the authors collected demographic data along with diagnoses and billing codes associated with skin cancer care over a randomly selected 1 year period (beginning on the month of each cSCC diagnosis for each patient). Nonimmunosuppressed controls were selected and matched for sex at birth and age.
The authors found transplant recipients developed more cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma over each year than nonimmunosuppressed patients (TR Mean: 2.4 vs Control Mean: 1.3). Both the mean and median cost of 1-year of skin-cancer related care for transplant recipients was significantly higher than that of nonimmunosuppressed patients. Specifically, the mean costs in transplant recipients was $9069 [SD $24,620], while in the nonimmunosuppressed controls it was $1796. Additionally, the median in transplant recipients was $2632, while in the nonimmunosuppressed controls it was $1170.
The authors conclude these results are largely due to transplant recipients requiring more advanced or multimodal treatment regimens when compared to their nonimmunosuppressed counterparts. This study is limited in its retrospective, single-center design.
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