title: Cost-effectiveness of palliative surgery versus nonsurgical procedures in gastrointestinal cancer patients.
abstract: Palliative care is an essential component to multidisciplinary cancer care. Improved symptom control, quality of life (QOL), and survival have resulted from its utilization. Cost-effectiveness and utility analyses are significant variables that should be considered in comparing benefits and costs of medical interventions to determine if certain treatments are economically justified. This is a review on the cost-effectiveness of palliative surgery compared to other nonsurgical palliative procedures in patients with unresectable gastrointestinal cancers. J. Surg. Oncol. 2016;114:316-322. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgical Oncology, University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas.
authors.forename: Bradford J
authors.initials: BJ
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgical Oncology, University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas.
authors.forename: Thomas A
authors.initials: TA
authors.lastname: Aloia
mesh_terms: D003362:Cost-Benefit Analysis; D005770:Gastrointestinal Neoplasms / Q000401:mortality / Q000473:pathology / Q000628:therapy*; D006801:Humans; D010166:Palliative Care / Q000191:economics*
keywords: cost analysis; cost-effectiveness; palliative stents; palliative surgery