Health Affairs February 26, 2025
Substance use disorders (SUDs) in oncology populations represent a significant yet underrecognized challenge, with prior research suggesting that up to 27 percent of cancer patients meet criteria for a SUD and that co-occurring substance misuse can increase annual health care expenditures by thousands of dollars per patient. As cancer care has evolved to include more sophisticated therapies such as targeted treatments and immunotherapy, the parallel challenge of hazardous alcohol use, prescription opioid misuse, and other substance use issues among oncology patients has not received commensurate attention. The consequences of overlooking SUDs are substantial; patients with co-occurring substance misuse are more likely to skip treatment sessions, experience avoidable complications, and rack up higher health care costs over the course of their...
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