Results from a recent study indicate that collecting more stem cells prior to a myeloma patient’s first transplant may be beneficial for future trans­plants.

Specifically, relapsed patients who received a second transplant with cells that had been collected prior to their first transplant, rather than those collected following the first transplant, had a lower risk of later developing myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS).

MDS is a group of blood disorders marked by ineffective production of blood cells.  MDS often progresses to acute …

A new study provides useful, if somewhat dated, insight into the efficacy and safety of Velcade combined with dexa­metha­sone to treat relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma.

The retrospective study, which was carried out using data from a single center in Italy, included patients who had a median of two previous ther­a­pies.

In these patients, the combination of Velcade (bortezomib) and dexa­meth­a­sone (Decadron) had an overall response rate of 55 percent, and a complete re­sponse rate of 19 …

French researchers recently determined that the chromosomal abnor­mal­i­ties t(4;14) and del(13) are less common in older newly diagnosed myeloma pa­tients than in younger patients.

In contrast, the del(17p) abnormality was found to occur with a similar frequency across myeloma patients of all ages.

The researchers also found that the t(4;14) and del(17p) abnormalities have the same prognostic value in older patients as in younger patients.

Specifically, older patients with t(4;14) and del(17p) had shorter pro­gres­sion-free and overall survival com­pared to …

Results from a recent small Phase 3 clinical trial show that the use of Velcade in preparation for donor stem cell transplantation as well as its use soon after transplantation and as maintenance therapy may be effective in high-risk multiple myeloma patients.

The results also indicate that the use of Velcade (bortezomib) soon after donor trans­­plan­­ta­­tion reduces the risk of developing a life-threatening donor trans­plant-related complication known as graft-versus-host disease.

The researchers note that, similar to other donor transplant protocols, …

Revlimid Plus Dexamethasone Extends Progression-Free Survival In Newly Diagnosed Multiple Myeloma Patients – Results of a large international Phase 3 trial show that Revlimid (lenalidomide) plus dexamethasone (Decadron) ex­tends progression-free survival in newly diagnosed multiple myeloma patients who are not eligible for autologous stem cell transplantation, compared to treat­ment with melphalan (Alkeran), prednisone, and thalidomide (Thalomid). Based on these findings, Celgene, the manufacturer of Revlimid, will start the pro­cess of applying for approval of …

The International Myeloma Working Group, a group of leading myeloma special­ists, recently published its recommendations for the treatment of bone disease in multiple myeloma patients.

The researchers recommend that all myeloma patients receiving their first anti-myeloma therapy should also receive treatment with bis­phos­pho­nates, regard­less of whether the patient shows evidence of bone disease on x-rays. They also note that a minimally invasive procedure known as kypho­plasty, as well as low-dose radiation therapy, may be used to reduce severe pain or …

Opinion: Different Experiences With Myeloma – In the latest article published in the opinion section of The Myeloma Beacon, Vietnam Veteran David Willson, who was diagnosed with multiple myeloma five years ago, writes about how multiple myeloma has affected his life. He feels that his experiences have been very dif­fer­ent from those described by most other myeloma patients writing or com­ment­ing at The Beacon. He would like to know whether his …