OBJECTIVES: Globally, the cancer burden continues to grow, exerting a tremendous strain on individuals and healthcare systems. The aim of this study is to simulate the use of a capacity tool to calculate the impact of using a fixed-dose combination of pertuzumab and trastuzumab for subcutaneous injection (PH FDC SC) versus the intravenous options (PIV + HIV) on the hospital and patients.

METHODS: We have developed a Microsoft Excel® tool and inputted information about a hypothetical hospital (number of patients, infusion chairs and working hours). We used data from the literature to input the active time spent by HCPs on drug preparation, administration and monitoring and the total amount of time spent by patients for administration and observation at the hospital.

RESULTS: In this scenario, we observed that the time spent by HCPs to prepare the medication and to administer and monitor all patients during one year of treatment is about 2 times greater with PIV + HIV compared to PH FDC SC. The use of PH FDC SC can save 5,8% of the hospital’s total capacity and allows to treat more patients per infusion chair per day. Furthermore, patients treated with PH FDC SC can stay around 90% less time in the hospital compared to patients receiving PIV + HIV.

CONCLUSIONS: This capacity tool demonstrates the impact of using different treatment options for HER2+ breast cancer on the hospital capacity and human resources customized to each hospital reality. The simulation demonstrated that PH FDC SC has potential to provide substantial timesavings for the pharmacy, the nurses and the patients due to its simpler preparation and considerably shorter duration of administration and observation periods. In conclusion, this capacity tool can inform hospitals about the value of different treatments besides efficacy and safety, demonstrating the impact on the hospital day-to-day management and on patients’ time.