Early Infliximab in Crohn’s is associated with decreased intestinal surgery and similar health care costs

Randomised clinical trial: First‐line infliximab biosimilar is cost‐effective compared to conventional treatment in paediatric Crohn's disease

“…patients with early anti-TNF use compared to late anti-TNF use, which is in line with the results of our study 7. However, our cost-effectiveness results contradict the findings from Bashir et al although a better effectiveness of early anti-TNF (<3 months after diagnosis) was reported compared to standard treatment, early anti-TNF was more expensive than step-up treatment (Canadian $127,628 vs. Canadian $96,516) over a period of 3 years 6.…”

“…6 However, another study performed in children with Crohn's disease, demonstrated that early anti-TNF treatment was more effective than late anti-TNF, with similar costs. 7 Despite the relatively high costs of infliximab, it has to be taken into account that the introduction of biosimilars (such as Inflectra® [CT-P13]) led to a decrease in the price of infliximab and a substantial reduction in healthcare costs of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). 8 A study in Scotland reported that utilisation of biosimilars increased to 91% in 2019, and another study showed that biosimilar use led to a reduction of 38% in healthcare costs.…”

“…One study conducted in children with Crohn's disease showed that early intervention with Remicade® (€988 per 100 mg vial of infliximab), the originator of infliximab, was not only more effective but also more costly (with an incremental cost of Canadian $31,112) compared to conventional treatment 6 . However, another study performed in children with Crohn's disease, demonstrated that early anti‐TNF treatment was more effective than late anti‐TNF, with similar costs 7 . Despite the relatively high costs of infliximab, it has to be taken into account that the introduction of biosimilars (such as Inflectra® [CT‐P13]) led to a decrease in the price of infliximab and a substantial reduction in healthcare costs of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) 8 .…”

Significant advantages for first line treatment with TNF-alpha inhibitors in pediatric patients with inflammatory bowel disease – Data from the multicenter CEDATA-GPGE registry study

“…Additionally, this treatment required significantly less dose escalation and still achieved mucosal healing (20). In a cohort study in Australia, early treatment with infliximab (within 12 months) was shown to be equally costefficient but with better clinical outcomes than later treatment with infliximab (21). In daily clinical routine, primary and secondary treatment failure is observed and represents a challenge…”

Editorial: implications and future perspectives of the increase in biologics use in paediatric inflammatory bowel disease

“…Furthermore, intravenously administered biologics require additional hospital visits for patients and their parents and will increase the burden on healthcare professionals. Although total costs may be lower for early use of anti‐tumour necrosis factor (TNF) agents due to better control of the disease, 5 another study showed that early anti‐TNF therapy was not cost‐effective compared to conventional treatment in children with Crohn's disease (CD) 6 . The potential increased burden on clinical practice and resource use due to the rise in biologics use should be acknowledged, and balanced against the evident benefits.…”