A randomised crossover trial of chemotherapy in the home: patient preferences and cost analysis

This is a critical abstract of an economic evaluation that meets the criteria for inclusion on NHS EED. Each abstract contains a brief summary of the methods, the results and conclusions followed by a detailed critical assessment on the reliability of the study and the conclusions drawn. The authors concluded that chemotherapy conducted at home, if feasible, can be considered as a valid alternative to traditional chemotherapy given at hospital. Although home-based therapy appeared more costly than hospital-based therapy, the analysis of costs did not include travelling costs and lost time for caregivers. The inclusion of such cost items could have reduced the difference of costs between the settings, since hospital costs appeared to have been underestimated.