LAUSR

25Background: We sought to determine if the reported improved performance of magnetic resonance imaging-ultrasound (MRI-US) fusion biopsy over systematic transrectal ultrasound-guided biopsy (TRUS) in the detection of prostate cancer justifies the added cost of the MR imaging. Methods: A decision-analytic Markov model with a lifetime horizon of 10 years was developed to evaluate diagnostic accuracy, long-term health outcomes, costs, and quality-of-life of two strategies (i.e., TRUS versus MRI-US fusion biopsy [prostate MRI followed potentially by MRI-US fusion biopsy]) as the initial diagnostic test in men with elevated prostate-specific antigen ( > 4 ng/ml) without prior evaluation. Probabilities of clinical events were obtained from published literature. Direct medical costs, including diagnostic and treatment-related costs, were derived from the Premier Hospital Database. Costs were inflated to 2015 US dollars and discounted at an annual rate of 3%. Health outcomes were measured in quality-adjusted lif...