{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,2,1]],"date-time":"2026-02-01T02:31:19Z","timestamp":1769913079672,"version":"3.49.0"},"reference-count":52,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"22","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2023,11,9]],"date-time":"2023-11-09T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1699488000000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Cancers"],"abstract":"<jats:p>(1) Background: Our understanding of and treatment for multiple myeloma (MM) has advanced significantly, and new pharmacological treatments have promising benefits but high price tags. This study analyzes prescription patterns and pharmaceutical expenditure for MM treatments in Catalonia\u2019s public healthcare system over eight years. (2) Methods: A retrospective observational study examined MM treatment data from 2015 to 2022 in Catalonia, using healthcare registries from the Catalan Health Service to collect information on patients, medicines used, and treatment costs. (3) Results: A total of 4556 MM patients received treatment, with a rising trend in the number of treated patients each year from 902 in 2015 to 1899 in 2022. The mean age was 68.9 years, and patients were almost evenly distributed by gender (51.5% male). Most patients were treated with bortezomib (3338 patients), lenalidomide (2952), and\/or daratumumab (1093). Most drugs showed increased utilization annually, most significantly for lenalidomide and daratumumab. The total pharmacological treatment cost throughout the entire study period was EUR 321,811,249, with lenalidomide leading with the highest total cost (EUR 157,236,784), and daratumumab exhibiting the highest increase in annual expenditure. (5) Conclusions: The study reveals a progressive increase in the number of MM patients treated and rising pharmaceutical costs. Lenalidomide and daratumumab incurred the highest costs. The findings highlight MM treatment\u2019s economic impact and the need to monitor prescription patterns and expenditures to optimize healthcare resources and decision making. Understanding these trends can guide resource allocation effectively.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/cancers15225338","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2023,11,9]],"date-time":"2023-11-09T08:08:58Z","timestamp":1699517338000},"page":"5338","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":3,"title":["Evolution of Pharmacological Treatments and Associated Costs for Multiple Myeloma in the Public Healthcare System of Catalonia: A Retrospective Observational Study"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"15","author":[{"given":"Gemma","family":"Garrido-Alejos","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Pharmacology, Therapeutics and Toxicology, Autonomous University of Barcelona, 08193 Barcelona, Spain"},{"name":"Medicines Strategy and Coordination Unit, Catalan Health Institute, 08007 Barcelona, Spain"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Guillem","family":"Saborit-Canals","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Medicines Department, Catalan Health Service (CatSalut), 08007 Barcelona, Spain"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Laura","family":"Guarga","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Medicines Department, Catalan Health Service (CatSalut), 08007 Barcelona, Spain"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0002-9238-5560","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Thais","family":"de Pando","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Medicines Department, Catalan Health Service (CatSalut), 08007 Barcelona, Spain"},{"name":"Digitalization for the Sustainability of the Healthcare System (DS3), Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute (IDIBELL), 08908 Hospitalet de Llobregat, Spain"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Miriam","family":"Umbria","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Medicines Department, Catalan Health Service (CatSalut), 08007 Barcelona, Spain"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Albert","family":"Oriol","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Catalan Institute of Oncology, Hospital German Trias i Pujol, 08916 Badalona, Spain"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Anna","family":"Feliu","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Pharmacy Department, Hospital de la Santa Creu i Sant Pau, 08025 Barcelona, Spain"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-3274-6048","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Caridad","family":"Pontes","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Pharmacology, Therapeutics and Toxicology, Autonomous University of Barcelona, 08193 Barcelona, Spain"},{"name":"Medicines Department, Catalan Health Service (CatSalut), 08007 Barcelona, Spain"},{"name":"Digitalization for the Sustainability of the Healthcare System (DS3), Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute (IDIBELL), 08908 Hospitalet de Llobregat, Spain"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Antonio","family":"Vallano","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Pharmacology, Therapeutics and Toxicology, Autonomous University of Barcelona, 08193 Barcelona, Spain"},{"name":"Medicines Department, Catalan Health Service (CatSalut), 08007 Barcelona, Spain"},{"name":"Healthcare Management of Hospitals, Catalan Health Institute, 08007 Barcelona, Spain"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2023,11,9]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1046","DOI":"10.1056\/NEJMra1011442","article-title":"Multiple myeloma","volume":"364","author":"Palumbo","year":"2011","journal-title":"N. 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