The economic burden of sickle cell disease in Australia

Background
Sickle cell disease (SCD) is an inherited condition that impairs red blood cell function, posing a substantial health burden on patients. As the prevalence of SCD in Australia rises due to migration, discussions surrounding treatment and management strategies are becoming more prominent.

Aims
Australia lacks a dedicated study on the prevalence and economic implications of SCD. In this study, we estimate the economic burden of SCD in Australia from the perspective of the Australian healthcare system.

Methods
We performed a cost-of-illness study by using a bottom-up approach to estimate resource use per patient from a national registry with unit costs from national sources, and a top-down estimate of the prevalence of SCD in Australia using stratification by ancestry.

Results
We estimated the prevalence of SCD in Australia in 2021 to be 8485 patients, the cost per patient per year to be AU$13 975 and the total cost to the Australian healthcare system to be approximately AU$119 million per year. Factors influencing costs were age, interventions and frequency of hospital visits for vaso-occlusive crises. Prevalence had the greatest influence on results in the sensitivity analysis.

Conclusions
While the estimated prevalence of SCD in Australia resulted in a relatively small total cost, the per patient annual cost of SCD remains high. This cost of SCD is anticipated to increase alongside migration and improved treatment. There are policies that could enhance patients' quality of life, thereby mitigating both economic and health burdens.