Cost‐effectiveness of polatuzumab vedotin in combination with chemoimmunotherapy (pola‐R‐CHP) in previously untreated diffuse large B‐cell lymphoma in Germany

Summary We evaluated the cost‐effectiveness of frontline polatuzumab vedotin‐R‐CHP (pola‐R‐CHP) treatment for patients with diffuse large B‐cell lymphoma (DLBCL) in Germany by using a Markov model (lifetime horizon). Progression rates and survival outcomes were extrapolated from the POLARIX trial. Outcomes were measured in incremental cost‐effectiveness ratios (ICERS) with a willingness‐to‐pay (WTP) threshold of €80 000/quality‐adjusted life‐years (QALY). Assuming, 69.6% 5‐year PFS with pola‐R‐CHP and 62.6% 5‐year PFS with R‐CHOP, the addition of polatuzumab vedotin resulted in an additional 0.52 life‐years and an incremental 0.65 QALYs but €31 988 additional cost. Based on this, pola‐R‐CHP was cost‐effective (€49 238/QALY) at a WTP of €80 000/QALY. The cost‐effectiveness of pola‐R‐CHP is highly dependent on its long‐term outcomes and cost. Our analysis is limited by the fact that the long‐term outcomes of pola‐R‐CHP are unknown at this time.