News and Numbers: Hospitalizations for Kids with Cancer

Rand: Now the numbers. This week’s News and Numbers finds that hospitalizations for kids with cancer are on the rise. A new AHRQ analysis shows hospital admissions for cancer patients under the age of 18 increased more than 80 percent from 2000 to 2005, from roughly 54,000 to nearly 100,000 admissions. Researchers say the dramatic increase in hospitalizations is due in part to higher survival rates and the need for complex medical treatments. While some children with cancer can get treatment in outpatient settings, other types of care, such as maintenance chemotherapy or radiation therapy, still require that they be hospitalized. Children with leukemia and brain cancer were the most likely to be hospitalized. Hospital costs for children with any type of cancer totaled $1.7 billion in 2005, up from $785 million in 2000. These data are from AHRQ’s Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project.