Preliminary re­­sults from an on­go­ing Phase 1/2 clin­i­cal trial sug­gest that elotuzumab, in com­bi­na­tion with Revlimid (lena­lido­mide) and low-dose dexamethasone (Decadron), may have po­ten­tial in the treat­ment of mul­ti­ple myeloma. The findings were pre­sented at the American Society of He­ma­tol­ogy’s 51^st Annual Meeting at the beginning of last month.

Dr. Ravi Vij from the Uni­ver­sity of Washington in St. Louis, co-author of the study, remarked, “The trial showed very high rates of re­sponse when elotuzumab is given …

The 2009 American Society of Hematology (ASH) Meeting showcased several presentations on Zolinza (vorinostat), a histone deacetylase inhibitor developed by Merck Pharmaceuticals that is currently investigated for the treatment of multiple myeloma.

Zolinza alters the way a cancer cell’s DNA creates proteins, which is important in cancer treatment because such a drug can slow down cell proliferation, minimize mutations in DNA and control cell death.

Zolinza With Revlimid And Dexamethasone

Preliminary data from an ongoing Phase 1 study …

A new study suggests that Velcade (bortezomib), in combination with other drugs, is a better treatment method for patients with newly diagnosed multiple myeloma than the previous standard drugs.

The study, titled “Velcade, Intravenous Cyclophosphamide, and Dexamethasone (VCD) Induction for Previously Untreated Multiple Myeloma (German DSMM XIa Trial),” will be presented on December 6 at the American Society of Hematology (ASH) Meeting in New Orleans.

The researchers compared a drug cocktail consisting of Velcade, cyclophosphamide (Cytoxan), and

As many multiple myeloma and other blood cancer patients know, it is illegal to pay bone marrow donors. But last week, the Institute for Justice (IJ) filed a lawsuit to overturn this ban. If the IJ is successful, physicians, donors, and especially patients may be significantly affected.

The IJ reports that more than 1,000 Americans die each year waiting for a donor match. “Myeloma patients are among those who need a transplant,” said Jeff Rowes, the IJ’s lead attorney on …

A study recently published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology suggests that thalidomide (Thalomid), used in conjunction with double autologous stem cell transplants, leads to better outcome in younger patients with newly diagnosed multiple myeloma.

Autologous stem cell transplants use stem cells collected from the patient’s own bone marrow rather than from a donor. In a double transplant treatment, two transplants are given to the patient within a six-month period.

The study authors retrospectively analyzed the data of …

In a recent study published in the journal Blood, researchers reviewed pre­vi­ously reported research and found a general correlation between “complete response” to ther­apy and survival for multiple myeloma patients.

Complete response, which is defined as a normal bone marrow evaluation and a negative immuno­fix­a­tion (a test to detect ab­nor­mal anti­bodies in the blood or urine), has been correlated to patient out­come for many blood cancers. However, conventional chemotherapy has rarely produced com­plete responses in myeloma patients.

The sig­nif­i­cance of …

Researchers at St George’s, University of London have developed a new directory that could lead to quicker and more targeted treatment for multiple myeloma and other cancer patients.

The directory identifies 40,000 genes that can cause cancer and lists the effects on each gene by three drugs used in the treatment of multiple myeloma.

The three drugs included in the directory are thalidomide (Thalomid), Revlimid (lenalidomide), and Actimid (pomalidomide, CC-4047). Both thalidomide and Revlimid are approved for …