The majority of myeloma patients develop bone disease, which is caused by two main factors: stimulation of cells that break down bone and suppression of cells that make bone. Drugs that alter these processes have therapeutic potential for bone disease.

A biological pathway called RANKL is known to increase break down of bone. Scientists have developed an antibody called denosumab, which decreases bone destruction by blocking the RANKL pathway. One dose of denosumab reduces bone resorption …

Most myeloma patients suffer from bone disease, which can cause pain and fractures. Pain caused by bone disease is often treated with localized radiation therapy, and fractures can be stabilized by surgical procedures. However, these therapies only treat symptoms and do not actually slow or prevent further bone disease. Only bisphosphonates (BPs) are commonly used to prevent bone disease associated with myeloma.

BPs are a class of drugs that prevent bone from breaking down. This therapy can decrease bone pain …

Up to 90 percent of multiple myeloma patients develop bone lesions. Lesions form when cells responsible for bone formation are either suppressed or absent and cells responsible for reabsorbing bone are overactive.

Multiple myeloma patients can experience bone destruction in any type of bone. Almost half of the patients suffer bone lesions in the spine; around one third are affected in the skull, pelvis, and ribs; and under one quarter are affected in the humeri, femora, and mandible.

Bone imaging …

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved Genzyme’s Mozobil (plerixafor injection), a drug that mobilizes hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) from the bone marrow into the bloodstream. Mozobil has been approved for non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma and multiple myeloma.

Mozobil is a small molecule CXCR4 chemokine receptor antagonist. The CXCR4 receptors are responsible for holding HSCs in bone marrow. These stem cells give rise to all blood types and can be used in cancer treatment. CXCR4 antagonists mobilize HSCs in …

A recent paper compared the old and new therapies of multiple myeloma in elderly patients. Until 2007, chemotherapy with melphalan and prednisone (MP) was considered the standard treatment. However, new treatments are needed since the median survival rate with the MP regimen is only three years.

One method considered for the elderly is melphalan therapy followed by autologous stem cell transplantation (ASCT). An Italian multiple myeloma study group showed that a 100-milligram dose of melphalan followed by ASCT given twice …

The Hard Rock Hotel & Casino will be hosting their first annual "Poker Jingle at the Hard Rock Poker Lounge" in Las Vegas, Nevada on December 12. The funds raised will benefit The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS) Southern Nevada chapter.

The holiday party is being held in memory of Mindy Trinidad, a member of the poker community who recently passed away from Acute Leukemia. Many professional poker players and celebrities will be participating, including Phil Hellmuth, Jamie Gold, Erick …

A study published in BMC Medicine in September 2008 shows that a link between genetic variations and cancer survival can help in treating multiple myeloma patients. Brian Van Ness, a scientist at the University of Minnesota, is the principal investigator of the study and designer of the research project. He collaborated with other scientists throughout the United States and London, United Kingdom.

The main principle behind the research is that there are large genetic variations in the …