Estimating the Burden of Cancer and Treatment Cost Related to Alcohol Consumption in Indonesia: a Descriptive Study

Abstract

Background: Alcohol consumption has become one of the most common cancer risk factors after smoking.<br />Nowadays, estimation of the burden of disease attributable to alcohol has become standard in documenting the impact<br />of health problems, but it has been rarely performed in Indonesia. The aim of this study was to estimate treatment<br />cost of cancer related to alcohol consumption among the Indonesian population. Methods: This research design was<br />descriptive with a prevalence-based approach using secondary data. Proportions of cancers were calculated using an<br />alcohol-attributable fractions (AAF) formula. Treatment costs for eight types of cancer were assessed according to<br />average treatment cost per patient from the national universal health coverage database for 2016. Result: The top<br />three AAFs for males were cancers of the pharynx, esophagus and larynx (17.5%, 15.3% and 7.98%, respectively),<br />while in females they were cancers of the esophagus, pharynx and stomach (2.15%; 1.39%; 0.83%). Among the eight<br />types of cancer studied, the highest incidence in males was noted for liver cancer (132 cases) while colorectal cancer<br />was the most common among females (31 cases). Treatment cost for cancers related to alcohol consumption were<br />highest for colorectak cancer followed by laryngeal and liver cancer (116,083, 98,325 and 93,253 USD, respectively.<br />Conclusion: The expenditure for treatment of cancers related to alcohol consumption accounts for about 1.71% of<br />total cancer treatment cost. Since cancers related to alcohol consumption can be considered having an economic<br />impact in Indonesia, it becomes important for the government to control alcohol consumption so that related healthcare<br />expenditure can be minimized.