How much does denosumab cost?

Today, the editor will introduce to you a subcutaneous injection drug that has a better anti-bone metastasis effect than traditional bisphosphonates - RANKL inhibitor (Xgeva, denosumab), also known as denosumab, and the Taiwanese version of the drug is "Cancer Bone Wa Injection". This drug has been approved by the FDA and has been included in the NCCN Guidelines.

Bone metastasis is an unavoidable disease metastasis that occurs in the late stages of many cancer patients. In addition to multiple myeloma, the incidence of bone metastasis in breast cancer and prostate cancer is as high as more than 70%. The probability of bone metastasis in lung cancer is also among the highest. Common locations for bone metastases include: ribs, skull, hip, spine, thigh bone, and upper arm bone. Once bone metastasis occurs, it will lead to severe skeletal lesions, including bone pain, pathological fractures, spinal cord compression, hypercalcemia and other skeletal related events (SRE). The two common symptoms and consequences it brings often cause the patient's life and quality of life to decline rapidly. One is bone pain. 50% to 90% of patients with bone metastases will experience pain, of which 50% are severe pain and 30% are unbearable pain. The other is pathological fractures, especially when the bone metastasis is on load-bearing bones such as the spine and hip. A slight uneven force may cause fractures, compressing important nerves and spinal cord, or damaging internal organs, leading to paraplegia and bleeding and other malignant events.

Denosumab is approved for the prevention of bone-related events in solid tumor bone metastases, but not for the prevention of bone-related events in patients with multiple myeloma. It is approved for use in adults or bone-mature adolescents with giant cell tumors of bone that are unresectable or where surgical resection may cause serious complications. It is approved for hypercalcemia in malignant tumors. So what's its price? According to the latest data collection, Amgen Biopharmaceutical’s original drug in the United States has a specification of 60mg/1ml per box and a price of US$1,169.98, which is really a huge expense! However, China has not approved the drug for sale, so more and more patients are choosing the US original drug marketed in Turkey. The specification is 125mg/1ml tube/box, and the price is equivalent to RMB 3,000.