Basic health insurance to cover test that can predict return of breast cancer

A special test that predicts the chance of hormone-sensitive breast cancer returning will be added to the basic health insurance for women over the age of 50. The test can save around 500 women from undergoing chemotherapy per year, according to the Dutch Healthcare Institute (Zorginstituut Nederland).

These tests measure the risk of recurrence of hormone-sensitive breast cancer. Women who have a low risk of recurrence don’t necessarily need chemotherapy.

The health insurers will reimburse two types of these tests - Oncotype DX and MammaPrint - for women over 50 with early stages of hormone-sensitive breast cancer. According to the Healthcare Institute, the data over the past eight years is convincing. This group of women has a 95 percent chance of survival without chemotherapy, the same as women who undergo chemotherapy.

Health insurers won’t reimburse the tests for women under 50 because they have a 5 percent greater risk of metastases without chemotherapy.

The Healthcare Institute expects that around 800 women per year will be eligible for a test, and around 500 of them will be able to safely avoid chemotherapy.

Healthcare Institute chairman Sjaak Wijma called the decision a good example of appropriate care. “Thanks to these tests, we are really doing something about the overtreatment of cancer patients. No more unpleasant side effects and therefore more quality of life. These women can recover faster and get their lives back on track.”

“It is a real win-win- situation,” Wijma said. “In addition to better quality of life [for the involved women], scarce healthcare personnel can be deployed better.”