Cost of drug treatment for patients with cancer in an outpatient setting, calculated based on standards of medical care.

Modern oncology has achieved impressive results in terms of increasing life expectancy and reducing mortality of patients with malignant neoplasms. This has led to many patients requiring long-term outpatient treatment. The purpose of the study is to calculate the cost of treatment of patients with malignant neoplasms in the Russian Federation in an outpatient setting based on standards of medical care. Materials and methods. Based on the standards of medical care, the cost of drug treatment for patients with cancer in an outpatient setting was calculated. A comparison was made of the estimated amount with the actual costs of purchasing drugs for outpatient use. Results. Current regulations do not determine the place of use of drugs under the conditions of medical care. Criteria for classifying drugs as drugs for outpatient use are proposed. The highest drug costs for outpatient cancer patients are for the treatment of breast cancer, melanoma, kidney cancer and ovarian cancer. Conclusions. Calculating the cost of drug treatment for patients with cancer in an outpatient setting based on standards of care does not reflect the true need for treatment based on clinical guidelines.