Health Economics Research Centre (HERC), University of Oxford

16/04/2026

NEW PUBLICATION

Public preferences for saving lives versus life-years: evidence from a person-trade-off experiment in 12 countries during the COVID-19 pandemic

Fiorella Parra-Mujica, Laurence S. J. Roope, Mara Violato, Raymond M. Duch & Philip M. Clarke

The European Journal of Health Economics 2026

This multi-country study explores a fundamental question in healthcare: should we prioritise saving more lives, or more years of life? Using survey data from over 14,000 people across 12 countries, we find that public preferences do not fully align with the standard approach of maximising life-years, or quality-adjusted life years (QALYs). Instead, people take a more nuanced view, valuing both lives and life-years, and considering factors such as age and social context. The findings suggest a degree of mismatch between healthcare prioritisation policies and societal preferences that warrants further consideration.

Health technology assessment (HTA) often prioritises outcomes measured in life-years or Quality-Adjusted Life Years (QALYs), implying a focus on maximising

13/04/2026

NEW PUBLICATION

A cluster-randomised trial in 84 English primary schools evaluated a screening-to-intervention pathway in which children aged 8 - 9 years were screened for anxiety problems and those who screened positive were offered digitally enhance parent-led CBT(OSI-A) alongside usual school provision, compared with usual provision alone. At 12 months, significantly more children in the intervention group were anxiety-free (61%) than in the control group (38%), with no reported adverse events, and the programme was effective with a relatively small amount of therapist time, indicating it can improve early access to treatment.

Prof Mara Violato from HERC is the study lead for economic evaluation, other co-authors include prof Alistair Gray and Rebecca Njuguna.

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2215036626000647

Oxford Population Health, University of Oxford, Department of Psychiatry, NIHR (National Institute for Health and Care Research)

01/04/2026

NEW PUBLICATION

Proton beam therapy for oropharyngeal cancer (TORPEdO): a phase 3, randomised controlled trial

David J Thomson, James M Price, Matthew Tyler, Matthew Beasley, Jim Lester, Christopher M Nutting, Nachi Palaniappan, Robin Prestwich, Shanmugasundaram Ramkumar, Anna Thompson, Guy Betts, Helen Bulbeck, Frances Charlwood, Matthew Clarke, Matthew Lowe, Justin Roe, Justine Tyler, Lorna Wilson, Jane L Wolstenholme, Kevin Chiu , Judith Christian, Clare Cruickshank, Deborah Gardiner, Holly Tovey, Catharine M West, Emma Hall

The Lancet 2026

31/03/2026

NEW PUBLICATION

Liquid biopsy for the diagnosis of EBV-positive Burkitt’s lymphoma in endemic areas

Clara Chamba, Heavenlight Christopher, Emmanuel Josephat, Julius Sseruyange, Alisen Ayitewala, Kieran Howard, Helene Dreau, Adam Burns, Ismail Legason, Isaac Otim, Priscus Mapendo, Leah Mnango, Advera Ngaiza, Alex Mremi, Edrick Elias, Carol Achola, William Mawalla, Rehema Shungu, Eli Mkwizu, Lulu Chirande, Hadija Mwamtemi, Salama Mahawi, Godlove Sandi, Heronima J. Kashaigili, Sıla Gerlevik, Paul Shadrack Ntemi, Erick Magorosa, Daniel Mbwambo, Malale Tungu, Martin Ogwang, Faraja Chiwanga, Sam M. Mbulaiteye, Claire El Mouden, Emmanuel Balandya, Anthony Cutts, Liz Morrell, Dimitrios Vavoulis & Anna Schuh

Nature Medicine 2026

https://nature.com/articles/s41591-026-04291-z

HERC researchers, Dr Liz Morrell, Jingjing Jiang, and prof Sarah Wordsworth, found that diagnosis by liquid biopsy could be cost-effective when used in the community setting to accelerate diagnosis of Burkitt lymphoma in children and young adults in Tanzania, depending on the decision threshold used.
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s12916-026-04694-2

Researchers from the University of Oxford and the Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences (MUHAS) in Dar es salaam, Tanzania have shown that a minimally invasive “liquid biopsy” test can diagnose Burkitt lymphoma rapidly and accurately in sub-Saharan Africa, where delays in traditional testing often prove fatal.

https://www.oncology.ox.ac.uk/news/blood-test-may-improve-survival-of-childhood-cancer-in-africa?

In clinical validation of a liquid biopsy assay, the approach enabled fast and accurate molecular diagnosis of EBV+ Burkitt’s lymphoma in more than 200 children and young adults in Tanzania and Uganda.

13/03/2026

HERC SHORT COURSES 2026

Registration is now open for bookings for HERC Online short courses for 2026.

This year, we're pleased to offer an exclusive 20% discount when you book multiple online courses.

1. Online: Integrating Economic Evaluation into Clinical Trials, 28 - 29 April 2026
https://www.herc.ox.ac.uk/herc-short-courses/integrating-economic-evaluation-into-clinical-trials

2. Online: Applied Methods of Cost-Effectiveness Analysis, 01 - 05 June 2026
https://www.herc.ox.ac.uk/herc-short-courses/applied-methods-of-cost-effectiveness-analysis

If you would like to make a group booking or have an inquiry, please contact us at herc@ndph.ox.ac.uk for more details.

We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you click 'Accept all cookies' we'll assume that you are happy to receive all cookies and you won't see this message again. If you click 'Reject all non-essential cookies' only necessary cookies providing core functiona...

11/03/2026

NEW PUBLICATION

Is liquid biopsy a cost-effective method to diagnose Burkitt Lymphoma in children and young adults? A health economic evaluation in Tanzania

Jingjing Jiang, Liz Morrell, Malale Tungu, William F. Mawalla, Clara Chamba, Lulu Chirande, Heronima J. Kashaigili, Elifuraha Mkwizu, Paul S. Ntemi, Godlove Sandi, Kristin Schroeder, Anna Schuh, George M. Ruhago, Sarah Wordsworth & AI-REAL Consortium

BMC Medicine 2026

Diagnosis by liquid biopsy could be cost-effective when used in the community setting to accelerate diagnosis of Burkitt lymphoma in children and young adults in Tanzania, depending on the decision threshold used.

Background Burkitt Lymphoma (BL) is a prevalent and highly aggressive childhood cancer in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Outcomes are poor, due in part to delays or inaccuracies in diagnosis. Liquid biopsy (sequencing circulating tumour DNA from blood) is an alternative approach that is non-invasive and....

23/02/2026

NEW PUBLICATION

Towards a Multi-sectoral Approach to Population Health: A Scoping Review of Cross-sectoral Evaluations of Health Interventions

Rositsa Koleva-Kolarova, Emily Hulse, Bertalan Németh, Maureen Rutten-van Mölken, Rhiannon Tudor Edwards, Balázs Babarczy, Balázs Nagy, Sarah Wordsworth, Apostolos Tsiachristas on behalf of the Invest4Health consortium

Applied Health Economics and Health Policy 2026

We looked into economic evaluations that used existing approaches for cross-sectoral evaluation of healthcare interventions to provide an understanding of how these approaches have been applied.

There is a limited number of published cross-sectoral evaluations of health interventions despite the need of public and private investors for global value assessment. Issuing guidance on performing cross-sectoral evaluations and highlighting their need by health technology assessment agencies may improve existing evidence and therefore novel forms of investment in population health interventions.

Background Health interventions, particularly those targeted at health promotion and disease prevention, often have a range of impacts that span beyond the healthcare sector. Making the case for investment in these interventions may require an inventory of costs and outcomes across multiple sectors....

20/02/2026

UPCOMING SEMINAR

Assoc. Prof. Helen Dakin will be leading a workshop at King's Health Economics titled "Interacting Decisions in Economic Evaluation and Health Technology Assessment".

Monday 2 March, 1-2 pm UK BST via MS Teams

Link to join 👇

We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you click 'Accept all cookies' we'll assume that you are happy to receive all cookies and you won't see this message again. If you click 'Reject all non-essential cookies' only necessary cookies providing core functiona...

06/02/2026

NEW PUBLICATION

Cost Effectiveness of Local Anaesthetic Transperineal Versus Transrectal Biopsy: Results from the TRANSLATE Study

TRANSLATE Trial Study Group (Jane Wolstenholme, Filipa Landeiro)

A local anaesthetic ultrasound-guided transperineal prostate biopsy has a higher mean cost and no significant difference in mean quality-adjusted life years, compared with a transrectal ultrasound-guided biopsy at 4 mo after the procedure.

05/02/2026

HERC SHORT COURSES 2026

Registration is now open for bookings for HERC Online short courses for 2026.
This year, we're pleased to offer an exclusive 20% discount when you book multiple online courses.

1. Online: Introduction to Health Economic Evaluation, 03 - 04 March 2026 or 22 - 23 September 2026
https://www.herc.ox.ac.uk/herc-short-courses/introduction-to-health-economic-evaluation

2. Online: Integrating Economic Evaluation into Clinical Trials, 28 - 29 April 2026
https://www.herc.ox.ac.uk/herc-short-courses/integrating-economic-evaluation-into-clinical-trials

3. Online: Applied Methods of Cost-Effectiveness Analysis, 01 - 05 June 2026
https://www.herc.ox.ac.uk/herc-short-courses/applied-methods-of-cost-effectiveness-analysis

If you would like to make a group booking or have an inquiry, please contact us at herc@ndph.ox.ac.uk for more details.

If you are certain you have the correct web address but are encountering an error, please contact the Site Administration. Thank you.

26/01/2026

NEW PUBLICATION

Correspondence on “Parents’ perceptions of the utility of genetic testing in the NICU” by Callahan et al

Sally L. Sansom, Chloe Mighton, Hadley Stevens Smith

Value in Health 2026

15/01/2026

HERC NEWS

HERC at

HERC researchers are attending the winter hosted by the Centre for Health Economics 👇

- Helen Dakin, The Trial Economics Planner (TEP): A tool to support decisions about incorporating economic components in clinical trials

- Xinyu Li, Integrating Secular Trends into Health Economic Models

- James Lathe, On measuring labour tax revenue and welfare benefits in health economic evaluations: relevance and practical integration

- Fred McElwee, A cost is a cost is a cost - Or is it? The Implications of Industry-Wide Rebate Mechanisms for Economic Evaluation and Health Technology Assessment

https://hesg.org.uk/meetings/winter-2026-university-of-york/

Winter 2026: University of YorkThe Health Economists’ Study Group Winter 2026 Meeting will be hosted by the Centre for Health Economics, University of York, from 14th-16th January 2026.Registration is now closed. Meeting scheduleThe HESG Winter Meeting will take place at The Milner York hotel, Yor...