BACKGROUND: In recent years, cases of @entity0 have been on the rise in Vietnam. To date, there has been no study on the financial @entity66 . This study estimates the direct medical cost of a 5-year treatment course for @entity1 with primary @entity0 in central Vietnam. METHODS: Retrospective @entity1 -level data from medical records at the Hue Central Hospital between 2001 and 2006 were analyzed. Cost analysis was conducted from the health care payers' perspective. Various direct medical cost categories were computed for a 5-year treatment course for @entity1 with @entity0 . Costs, in US dollars, discounted at a 3% rate, were converted to 2010 after adjusting for inflation. For each cost category, the mean, standard deviation, median, and cost range were estimated. Median regression was used to investigate the relationship between costs and the stage, age at diagnosis, and the health insurance coverage of the @entity1 . RESULTS: The total direct medical cost for a 5-year treatment course for @entity0 in central Vietnam was estimated at  975 per @entity1 (range:  11.7- 3,955). The initial treatment cost, particularly the cost of chemotherapy, was found to account for the greatest proportion of total costs (64.9%). Among the @entity1 characteristics studied, stage at diagnosis was significantly associated with total treatment costs. @entity1 at later stages of @entity0 did not differ significantly in their total costs from those at earlier stages however, but their survival time was much shorter. The absence of health insurance was the main factor limiting service uptake. CONCLUSION: From the health care payers' perspective, the Government subsidization of public hospital charges lowered the direct medical costs of a 5-year treatment course for primary @entity0 in central Vietnam. However, the long treatment course was significantly influenced by out-of-pocket payments for @entity1 without health insurance.

Cost of treatment for XXXX in central Vietnam.

@entity1 :: ('9606', 'Species') :: ['women', 'Patients', 'patients', 'patient'] @entity0 :: ('MESH:D001943', 'Disease') :: ['breast cancer'] @entity66 :: ('MESH:D004194', 'Disease') :: ['burden of the disease']
@entity0 :: (MESH:D001943,Disease) :: ['breast cancer']
