title: Bayesian approach in pharmacoeconomics: relevance to decision-makers.
abstract: The Bayesian approach is becoming increasingly visible in pharmacoeconomics. This approach has been primarily applied to two decision problems commonly encountered in pharmacoeconomics: adoption and allocation. Acceptability curves generated from Bayesian cost-effectiveness analyses can be interpreted as the probability that the new treatment is cost-effective at a given level of willingness-to-pay. This probabilistic interpretation of study findings provides information that is more relevant and easier to understand for those who make adoption decisions. The Bayesian value of information analysis offers a decision-analytic framework to explore values of additional research and to set research priorities. It is a useful analytical framework for decision-makers who wish to achieve allocation efficacy.
authors.affiliation: Section of Health Services Research, Unit 196, Department of Biostatistics, The University of Texas, MD Anderson Cancer Center, 1515 Holcombe Blvd., Houston, Texas 77030-4009, USA. yashih@mdanderson.org
authors.forename: Ya-Chen Tina
authors.initials: YC
authors.lastname: Shih