Dr. Hill and Dr. Sauter Address Financial Toxicity in CAR T-Cell Therapy

Craig Sauter, MD, is director of the Blood and Marrow Transplant Program at Cleveland Clinic. Brian T. Hill, MD, PhD, is director of the Lymphoid Malignancies Program and a Staff Physician at the Cleveland Clinic Taussig Cancer Institute. In this interview, they discuss ways to address financial toxicity for patients who are undergoing CAR T-cell therapy.

The expense of CAR T-cell products is well established. Results from a study published in 2021 showed that the total care cost can rise to more than $2 milliion.

The problem is a real one, Sauter said. Society will have to determine how much of the cost for these therapies governments can and should cover. Dr Hill added that giving Medicare the ability to negotiate prices for these agents may be the starting point for addressing costs, Hill added.