Last year, I emerged from a three-week hospital stay for a stem cell trans­plant in late March.  On the drive home, I almost wept with happi­ness looking at the flowering cherry trees, forsythia bushes, and tulips. Com­pared with the subdued hues of my hospital room, the colors were so glorious and bright.   Spring had come early, and March had been one of the warmest on record.

This year, it has been cool here in the northeast, and spring has been …

Within the past nine months, two new agents have been approved for the treat­ment of re­lapsed mul­ti­ple myeloma.

In July 2012, a sec­ond gen­er­a­tion pro­te­a­some in­hib­i­tor, Kyprolis (car­filzomib), was approved for patients with re­lapsed/refractory dis­ease. In Feb­ru­ary of this year, Pomalyst (poma­lido­mide) was approved for use in similar patients.

These two agents, with dexamethasone (Decadron) or in com­bi­na­tion with other drugs, should fur­ther broaden the armamentarium for the treat­ment of myeloma as we con­tinue …

Further findings from two clinical studies of Revlimid maintenance thera­py were presented at the 14^th International Myeloma Workshop (IMW) in Kyoto, Japan, earlier this month.

Both studies involved newly diagnosed multiple myeloma patients who received maintenance therapy with Revlimid (lenalidomide).

Results from both studies, which were published in the New England Journal of Medicine last May, indicate that Revlimid maintenance therapy significantly increases progression-free survival compared to a placebo (see related Beacon news). One of the studies also …

In my February column, I discussed my decision to forego maintenance therapy and go drug free following the conclusion of my initial treatment.  I closed the column with the statement "I have made my decision, and good, bad, or indif­fer­ent, I will live with it."

A bold, confident statement and one I still stand behind.  However, in the weeks since ending my treatment, it's also one that I think will be easier said than done.

It's difficult not to …

A subgroup analysis of recent Phase 1/2 clinical trial results shows that Kyprolis in com­bi­na­tion with Revlimid and low-dose dexa­meth­a­sone is effective and well tolerated in newly diagnosed multiple myeloma patients over the age of 65.

All of the evaluated patients responded to treat­ment, with 83 per­cent of patients reaching at least a near complete response.

According to Dr. Andrzei Jakubowiak of the University of Chicago Medical Center, who presented the findings earlier this month at the Inter­na­tional Myeloma Workshop …

Myeloma is measured by the numbers. Those of us with it are always counting on our fingers, tallying our gains and losses.

We know our IgG number. We know our M-spike. We can reel off our free light chain kappa/lambda ratio. Our hemoglobin, our red blood cell count, our creatinine levels, our neutrophil count – we know them all.

Some of us keep detailed spreadsheets, tracking our lab results over long periods of time. Doing this is yet another tool …

During a session at the International Myeloma Workshop (IMW) held in Japan last week, Dr. Keith Stewart from the Mayo Clinic summarized the latest findings from research related to the protein cereblon and its im­pact on certain myeloma treatments.

Dr. Stewart reported that low levels of cereblon are associated with lower re­sponse rates and reduced survival outcomes in multiple myeloma patients treated with the immunomodulatory agents Revlimid (lena­lido­mide), thalidomide (Thalomid), and Pomalyst (pomalidomide).

He explained …