Socioeconomic Burden of Ovarian Cancer in 11 Countries Study
The World Ovarian Cancer Coalition’s Socioeconomic Burden of Ovarian Cancer in 11 Countries Study is a groundbreaking work highlighting the comprehensive impact of ovarian cancer—a burden that extends far beyond healthcare expenditure. This research, undertaken collaboratively by the Coalition, RTI International and the World Health Organization, evaluates the health, economic, and social burden across 11 diverse nations representing varying geographies and income levels. It builds upon the Coalition’s landmark Every Woman Study™ series, which documented the patient experiences of almost 4,000 women in 2018 and 2024.
Topline global results were presented at the Union for International Cancer Control’s (UICC) World Cancer Congress in Geneva in September of 2024. The full study, co-authored with the World Health Organization and RTI International, has been published in the JCO Global Oncology, an American Society of Clinical Oncology Journal.
Background and Approach
Ovarian cancer remains among the most aggressive tumours with the lowest survival probabilities. Projections are that ovarian cancer will claim more than 8 million lives from 2022 to 2050 without better prevention or control measures. Data from this Study offers pivotal evidence that allows the Coalition and our advocacy partners to engage policy makers in new ways to call for policy changes that will benefit women, their families and carers.
The study employed a custom-built comprehensive costing model using multiple national and global datasets. The resources and costs of providing care, the effect of ovarian cancer on women’s ability to work and the time spent by family and friends looking after women living with ovarian cancer were all assessed to quantify both direct and indirect costs.
- Direct Costs: Expenses related to diagnosis, treatment (including genetic testing and palliative care), and non-medical costs like patient travel and treatment time.
- Indirect Costs: Productivity losses to due absenteeism, presenteeism, and labour force withdrawal, alongside the often-unrecognized cost of unpaid caregiving.
The societal cost was quantified using the Value of a Statistical Life Year (VSLY), capturing the economic value of lives lost to ovarian cancer.
Tapping into our global network, we engaged key clinician experts in each of the eleven countries, whose insights proved valuable in assessing our approach and methodology.
The micro-costing framework evaluates the resources and costs involved in providing care. It uses data from new systemic reviews and meta-analyses to estimate the impact of ovarian cancer on patient labour productivity outcomes and the time that caregivers devote to those living with the disease.The Study provides detailed data in the eleven countries included in the analysis: Australia, Canada, Colombia, India, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Malaysia, Malawi, Nigeria, UK, US, with the low- and middle-income countries also covered in our Every Woman Study™: Low- and Middle-Income Edition. Looking at direct healthcare costs such as diagnosis, primary treatment, maintenance treatment and surveillance the study quantifies how much of national healthcare expenditure is spent on treating ovarian cancer. It also quantifies the unpaid cost of caregivers time dedicated to looking after those who are living with the disease. Ultimately, the socioeconomic burden of ovarian cancer in 11 countries study places a value on the thousands of lives lost to ovarian cancer in 2023 and in future years.
Through this study we are able to evidence the substantial socioeconomic burden of ovarian cancer. This significantly strengthens our call for a global ovarian cancer initiative that focuses on prevention, access to rapid diagnosis and best treatments and support for women and their caregivers.
The Findings
In 2023 the socioeconomic losses from ovarian cancer across 11 countries totalled US$70 billion, with mortality costs comprising over 90%. The mortality cost is the unrealized contribution to society from women who have lost their lives to this disease. Health expenditure attributable to ovarian cancer followed at 7%. The value of patient time, informal caregiving, and labour productivity losses comprised the remainder.
The published study can be found here on the website of the Journal of Global Oncology.
The Call to Action
This study underscores the urgency for global, coordinated responses. To address the significant burden of ovarian cancer, global policymakers, including healthcare professionals at the intersection of policy and clinical practice, must advocate for meaningful change to improve the lives of women and their carers.
Raising awareness of ovarian cancer is crucial in all resource settings. We know from our 2018 Every Woman Study™ and our Every Woman Study LMIC Edition™ that awareness of the disease is low, with up to 69% of the population unaware of the condition, rising to as high as 92% in some countries. Efforts to reduce diagnosis delays must also be prioritized.
Prevention strategies and strengthened health systems are imperative to better support all those affected. This means establishing reliable data collection systems and integrating ovarian cancer into National Cancer Control Programmes (NCCP). Improving access to genetic testing is essential to optimize opportunities to prevent and better treat the disease. Providing comprehensive support—physical, psychological, and vocational—is also essential to improve the return-to-work rates of cancer survivors.
Lastly, recognising and supporting the critical role of caregivers is long overdue. Counselling and therapy interventions are necessary to enhance the quality of life for both patients and carers, whose contributions have too often been overlooked.