$Zytiga/Abiriterone$: Previously... - Advanced Prostate...

Advanced Prostate Cancer

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$Zytiga/Abiriterone$

Spyder54 profile image
19 Replies

Previously switched ZYTIGA from CVS Specialty at $366/mo to Walmart Pharm w “GOOD Rx” at $222/mo. Just went in to pick up 3rd month and was told $8,000/mo. WHAT!!🤑. GOOD Rx app says Publix Grocery Pharm at $258/mo. Switched over for pick up tomorrow. Phew. Kroger Grocery Pharm cheaper but are not in the St Petersburg, FL Mkt place.

Hope this saves you Boyz some $K. It all adds up.

Best to you and yours,

Mike

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Spyder54 profile image
Spyder54
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19 Replies
tango65 profile image
tango65

Vons, Albertson, Ralph and Safeway are also selling it for $ 220

goodrx.com/abiraterone

Kentucky1 profile image
Kentucky1

Same thing happened to me earlier this year. In my case it was Walgreens who had the cheapest price. Seems like Kroger must have lost it's preferred status with the insurers in my area. I guess the same for you. Go back and check with your Med D plan to see if they have a new preferred pharmacy. My GoodRX price was about $250, but if I use my Med D plan after the first 2 fills meet my deductible, I'll pay somewhere around $150

If you have private insurance (aetna, cigna, etc) then through insurance it's about $300. But if you make less than $200k or so you can get copy assistance. I pay $10 a month.

Otherwise goodrx is a great deal.

janssencarepath.com/patient...

Concerned-wife profile image
Concerned-wife in reply to

I was happily surprised by how high you mentioned the income limit to be so I clicked. If I then click on “ have government insurance” ( Medicare) it doesn’t offer the assistance but does have a good list of other programs which might help people in general with their prescription costs. janssencarepath.com/patient...

Thanks for sharing

in reply toConcerned-wife

You are welcome and I'm glad that it sort of helped in a roundabout way...

If you find a discount program that works, do you mind posting it here for others?

Thanks

JamesHughs profile image
JamesHughs

I don’t get it…..but I know it’s true because I’ve done the same comparative shopping. Unfortunately, my insurance makes me use one of the price gougers. The pricing differences are disgusting. I have to work to keep my insurance, but because I work, I don’t get much of a price break. January’s Abiraterone was $2600 after insurance and copay assistance. This month it will be $1675 with my copay assistance. Then $500/month until I meet my total plan $8000 deductible in October or so. Pretty discouraging. I don’t wish ill will on anyone, but it would be interesting if some of the drug executives got to walk in our shoes for just a mile or so. Sorry about venting.

Spyder54 profile image
Spyder54 in reply toJamesHughs

Crazy! Good Rx is free. Google it. Get the card. Go to the App. Should save u a ton. Bypass your lame insurance. Just use the Good Rx at one of the above Pharmacies

noahware profile image
noahware in reply toJamesHughs

Is that for a generic?If you have not already, you might consider discussing taking a reduced dose, WITH FOOD, with your doc. Some men take 250 w/ food rather than 1000 on an empty stomach, with good results. Studies have validated this approach, even though it means more potential variation in the amount of med one absorbs. In theory, one could pay and pick up a monthly scrip for 120 pills and have it actually last four months.

Scribb profile image
Scribb in reply tonoahware

Are you sure about this? The only study on this I came across indicated the reverse i.e. better results on a half dose of Zytiga on an empty stomach compared with a full dose on a full stomach (as currently recommended)?

Spyder54 profile image
Spyder54 in reply toScribb

Wow. I say again, we are all just one big human experiment. Here is a 3rd idea….what if? Big if! What if by taking a half dose, it extended the time to castration resistance??? Kind of makes sense. Plus unlikely to hear from the company as it would cut their Revenues in half. Life is so fragile. Probably just as likely to cut in half the time to resistance as the half dose would give PCa an easier workaround with fewer enemies in the system. Even crazier, on an opposite tack, take normal 4-250mg tabs on a full stomach, just after eating and turbo charge the warriors to wipe out more PCa cells and put them into sennescence for a longer time? 4 experiments, each with a human life on the line. “It all works, but nothing works well”.Mike

Concerned-wife profile image
Concerned-wife in reply toScribb

uchicagomedicine.org/forefr...

Spyder54 profile image
Spyder54 in reply toConcerned-wife

Thank you for the study from Univ of Chicago

noahware profile image
noahware in reply toScribb

see link below by concerned-wife

in reply toScribb

That would be a question for your MO. My MO thinks it's ok.

Prospective International Randomized Phase II Study of Low-Dose Abiraterone With Food Versus Standard Dose Abiraterone In Castration-Resistant Prostate Cancer - PubMed

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/295...

Low-Fat Abiraterone Food Effect Is of Little Consequence | Journal of Clinical Oncology

ascopubs.org/doi/10.1200/JC...

Dismissing Reduced Abiraterone Dose Is 'Absolutely Wrong'

medscape.com/viewarticle/90...

Low cost abiraterone - PMC

ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/labs/pmc/a...

ZYTIGA (alibraterone acetate) tablets

accessdata.fda.gov/drugsatf...

Food Effect Study of Abiraterone Acetate for Treatment of Patients With Castration-Resistant Prostate Cancer - Full Text View - ClinicalTrials.gov

clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show...

It would be nice if the government conducted an RCT 1000 mg vs 750, 500, 250 with food.

Concerned-wife profile image
Concerned-wife in reply toJamesHughs

Spyder54 is correct. You can use free GoodRx outside your insurance. We did this for a while. You look up the pharmacies in your area. Costco was great to work with and we are not members.

in reply toJamesHughs

What type of insurance do you have thru work? I am also working. I would pay $1500 the first month then $15 a month for the rest of the year. I have a high deductible HSA medical plan. My max total out of pocket for the year is $3200.

There is a great hesitancy to migrate to the High Deductible HSA medical plans but I've found them to be better at protecting the total costs of medical care.

Oh..my network of providers is very large...so I've never had to use the out of network providers.

JamesHughs profile image
JamesHughs in reply to

I have a HDP with my wife and I both covered. That’s the only one my company offers at this time. Meds $3000 deductible then 20% until full deductible for the plan is met at $8000. After that, everything is covered….unfortunate, I’m pretty broke by then. But at the end of the day, great company to work for and I’m very fortunate to have meds that are prolonging things.

in reply toJamesHughs

Do you max out the HDP contributions?

JamesHughs profile image
JamesHughs

Yes

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