Ever since I was diagnosed with multiple myeloma five and a half years ago, hardly a day goes by when I don’t read some breathtaking headline about the promise of “personalized medicine” in the treatment of cancer.

News article after news article declares that breakthroughs in unlocking cancer's genetic code will lead to new, highly individualized, highly effective treatments.

Sounds great.  How could it not make your heart race a little faster knowing a cure is right around the corner?

Yet, when I go to talk to my doctor, none of this …

The results of a recent British analysis found that multiple myeloma patients with a deletion in chromosome 17 who received thalidomide induction therapy had improved response rates compared to those who did not receive thalidomide. 

These improved response rates also were accompanied by improve­ments in patients' overall survival, but the improvements were not statistically significant.

Moreover, patients with a deletion in chromosome 17 who received thalidomide as part of a maintenance regimen had shorter overall survival than those who did not receive thalidomide maintenance.

Based on these findings, the study authors conclude that alternative …

Donor stem cell transplantation may be an effective treatment for myeloma patients with certain chromosomal abnormalities, according to a recent retrospective analysis of patient data conducted in France.

In particular, the analysis showed that patients with a high risk for poor prognosis - those with the chromosomal abnormalities del(17p), t(4;14), or t(14;16) - achieved similar outcomes after receiving a donor stem cell transplant as patients without these abnormalities.

“Our retrospective analysis indicates for the first time that [donor stem cell transplantation] might overcome the poor impact of del(17p),” said the study’s lead …

Results of a recent study show that the presence of residual cancer cells and chromosomal abnormalities are strong predictors of early relapse in multiple myeloma patients who achieve a complete response after undergoing stem cell transplantation.

The results were presented last week by Dr. Bruno Paiva, from the Salamanca Hospital Complex in Spain and lead author of the study, at the 16^th Congress of the European Hematology Association (EHA) in London. The authors recommended that myeloma patients with chromosomal abnormalities and persistent residual disease following transplantation should be considered for additional (consolidation) …

Results of a recent German study show that the chromosomal abnormalities del(17p13) and +1q21 may reduce overall survival in relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma patients receiving Revlimid-dexamethasone compared to patients without these abnormalities.

The results also indicate that patients with t(14;16) receiving Revlimid-dexamethasone have a shorter time to disease progression than patients without this abnormality. In addition, patients with del(13q14) in combination with certain other chromosomal abnormalities may have decreased response rates and a shorter time to disease progression.

The study authors, however, recommended additional evaluation of these chromosomal abnormalities in larger patient populations, …

Yesterday was the second day of the International Myeloma Workshop (IMW) in Paris.  The day was full of presentations from early morning through the evening, and the day concluded with a poster session.

Some of the highlights from Day 2 of the conference are summarized in this article.  For more detailed summaries of the day's sessions, see The Beacon’s extensive Day 2 coverage in the Beacon Forums.

Treating Younger, Newly Diagnosed Myeloma Patients

The first session of the morning was about treating newly diagnosed patients under the age of 65 years.

First, Dr. …

This year’s International Myeloma Workshop (IMW) started in Paris yesterday morning and will continue through Friday.

Yesterday’s schedule included three sessions of oral presentations and a poster session in the afternoon.  The focus of the oral sessions was to present the current understanding of the biochemistry and molecular mechanisms related to multiple myeloma.

These talks were more technical than the ones that will be made later in the week, and their material will not likely have an immediate impact on how current multiple myeloma patients are treated.

In particular, yesterday’s sessions included …