HEcoPerMed Guidance for Harmonisation and Improvement of Economic Evaluations in Personalised Medicine
This guidance helps researchers and decision-makers improve how they assess the costs and benefits of personalised medicine. It offers clear recommendations to make economic evaluations more consistent and reliable, especially when dealing with uncertainty, limited data, and complex test-and-treatment pathways.
At a glance
Use when
Developing or reviewing economic models for personalised medicine, especially when dealing with uncertainty, complex pathways, or novel value elements.
Avoid when
Conducting economic evaluations of non-personalised, one-size-fits-all treatments where standard methods are sufficient.
Inputs
Clinical and economic data from randomised or non-randomised studies, test characteristics, treatment pathways, patient compliance rates, survival data, and structural assumptions about disease progression and testing strategies.
Outputs
Recommendations for robust, transparent, and consistent economic models of personalised medicine, including guidance on model structure, data use, and reporting standards.
How it works
Developed through a targeted literature review, expert interviews, and a systematic review of 195 economic evaluations of personalised medicine, this guidance presents 23 evidence-based recommendations. It addresses modelling challenges such as structural uncertainty, use of non-randomised data, parameterisation, discounting, perspective, premature survival data, compliance, and inclusion of broader value elements. The guidance was refined through stakeholder consultation and aims to harmonise methodological practice in economic evaluations of personalised medicine.
- Project
- HEcoPerMed
- Funding
- Horizon 2020
- Project status
- Completed 2022
- HTA domains
- Clinical Effectiveness, Costs & Economic Evaluation, Patient and Social Aspects
- Assumptions
- That current economic evaluation methods require adaptation to adequately capture the value of personalised medicine, and that improved methodological consistency will enhance decision-making credibility.
- Strengths
- Based on comprehensive evidence synthesis from methodological and applied literature,Incorporates input from experts and stakeholders,Addresses both methodological and practical challenges in modelling personalised medicine,Provides actionable recommendations for modellers and reviewers
- Limitations
- Some recommendations may be difficult to implement with limited data,Does not provide a one-size-fits-all model structure,Relies on expert judgment where evidence is sparse
- Also known as
- HEcoPerMed Guidance, Guidance for Harmonisation of Economic Evaluations in PM
Questions this answers
- › How should test-treatment pathways in personalised medicine be modelled?
- › What are best practices for handling structural and parameter uncertainty in PM economic models?
- › How should economic models handle the lack of randomised controlled trial data?
- › What perspective and discounting rates are appropriate in PM evaluations?
- › How can additional value elements (e.g., patient stratification benefits) be incorporated?
- › What role do managed entry agreements play in the economic evaluation of PM?
References & sources
Related methods
Similar by meaning
- HEcoPerMed Modeling Case Studies for Validation of Methodological Guidance
- Model Parameter Estimation and Uncertainty
- Guidelines for the Economic Evaluation of Health Technologies: Canada — 4th Edition
- Guideline for the economic evaluation of medicines (CAPF / Spanish NHS Advisory Committee for Pharmaceutical Financing)
- Dutch Guideline for Economic Evaluations in Healthcare
Beta record. Based on the original catalogue summary; primary-source enrichment pending.