Results from an Italian Phase 1/2 trial show that a combination therapy consisting of lower doses of Velcade, melphalan, and prednisone may be an effective and safe salvage therapy for older multiple myeloma patients.

Over half of the patients in the trial responded to the treatment, and according to the study investigators, the treatment was well tolerated, making it a viable treatment option for older myeloma patients.

In Europe, the combination treatment of Velcade (bortezomib), melphalan (Alkeran), and prednisone – commonly referred to as VMP – is often given as initial therapy to …

Results from a recent Spanish study suggest that treatment with a combination of intravenous busulfan and melphalan is as effective as melphalan alone in preparing patients with multiple myeloma for stem cell transplantation.

Given that the busulfan (Busulfex)-melphalan (Alkeran) regimen uses a lower dose of melphalan (140 mg/m²) than the melphalan-only regimen (200 mg/m²), these findings may benefit patients who are unable to tolerate high doses of melphalan.

A previous study found that an oral busulfan-melphalan combination might be more effective but not as safe as melphalan alone in preparing …

The results of a Phase 1 study show that Kepivance reduces the severity of melphalan-related mouth ulcers in multiple myeloma patients. Due to better tolerability, the melphalan dosage could be safely increased to 280 mg/m² prior to a stem cell transplant.

Almost two-thirds of the patients, who all had normal kidney function, had responded to the regimen at 100 days post transplant. The study investigators point out, however, that a Phase 2 trial will be necessary to better determine the efficacy of this regimen.

High-dose chemotherapy followed by autologous stem cell transplantation …

Multiple myeloma patients receiving an infusion of their own stem cells either one day or two days after undergoing treatment with high-dose melphalan demonstrate similar clinical outcomes, according to a recent U.S. study.

The study investigators conclude that a day of rest between treatment with melphalan and stem cell infusion appears not to be necessary.  Based on their findings, they recommend that melphalan administration the day before stem cell infusion should be considered as standard of care.

According to Dr. Giampaolo Talamo of the Penn State Hershey Cancer Institute in Hershey, Pennsylvania, …

The results of a recent Phase 1/2 study suggest that a combination of Velcade and melphalan followed by two back-to-back stem cell transplants is active and well-tolerated in multiple myeloma patients who failed to respond to their initial therapy or who have plasma cell leukemia, a highly aggressive form of myeloma.

Although the response and survival rates for this regimen did not improve upon those for previously tested regimens, the study authors contend that further studies of this novel Velcade-melphalan combination should be conducted to better understand the synergistic properties of these …

Results of a recent study conducted in the United Kingdom show that elderly and transplant-ineligible multiple myeloma patients who are treated with a reduced-dose combination of cyclophosphamide, thalidomide, and dexamethasone as initial therapy achieve a greater overall response rate than patients who are treated with melphalan plus prednisone.

However, patients who received the three-drug combination had comparable overall survival and progression-free survival rates as patients who received melphalan plus prednisone.  Additionally, side effects were more common among patients treated with the three-drug combination.

High-dose chemotherapy followed by autologous stem cell transplantation is …

The results of a recent study from Italy suggest that the combination treatment of melphalan, prednisone, and thalidomide may increase survival in newly diagnosed elderly multiple myeloma patients compared to melphalan and prednisone alone. However, the rate of side effects increased with the addition of thalidomide.

Despite the higher rate of side effects, the study authors suggested that the combination of melphalan (Alkeran), prednisone, and thalidomide (Thalidomid) (MPT) should be considered a standard of care for newly diagnosed patients who are over 65 years old or ineligible for a …