Echinocandins in the treatment of candidaemia and invasive candidiasis: clinical and economic perspectives

Candidaemia and invasive candidiasis (IC) complicate modern medical therapy, contributing to high morbidity and mortality. Managing candidiasis is costly, with an additional healthcare expenditure of nearly US$300 million annually. Recent consensus guidelines have suggested the use of newer antifungal agents, such as echinocandins, for the treatment of candidaemia and IC owing to promising clinical outcomes compared with older-generation antifungal agents, but at higher drug acquisition and administration costs. Comprehensive cost-effectiveness data for echinocandins in treating candidaemia and IC remain relatively scant, underlining the need for more studies to incorporate robust economic analyses into clinical decisions. Assessment of the cost efficiencies of these expensive antifungal agents is essential for maximising health outcomes within the constraints of healthcare resources. This review will explore the epidemiology of candidaemia and IC in the context of clinical and economic aspects of the antifungal agents used to treat IC, especially the echinocandins. Standardising the outcome measure, methodology and reporting of results used in economic studies is central to ensure validity and comparability of the findings. Future studies comparing the economic advantages of all available antifungal treatment options and in the context of new diagnostic tools for fungal infections are anticipated.