Kidney failure, which affects 20 percent of all multiple myeloma patients, is a serious complication that can lead to permanent kidney impairment and continued reliance on dialysis. However, a wide range of treatment options is available to myeloma patients experiencing kidney failure. Successful treatment methods include rehydration, correction of hypercalcemia (a condition that results in high serum calcium levels), and discontinuation of non-steroidal, anti-inflammatory drugs (such as aspirin or ibuprofen), that reduce blood flow to the kidneys.

A common complication found in myeloma patients experiencing kidney failure is hypercalcemia, a disorder that …

Kidney failure, the inability of the kidneys to properly expel waste from the body, is a common side effect of multiple myeloma. Approximately 20 percent of all myeloma patients develop progressive kidney failure sometime during the course of their disease.

The signs and symptoms of kidney failure that often occur in myeloma patients include hypercalcemia and excess free light chains in the blood.

Hypercalcemia is a disorder that occurs when a myeloma patient’s affected or damaged bone dissolves and creates an overabundance of calcium in the bloodstream. The kidneys overwork while processing …

Autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplants (auto-HSCT) may reverse kidney failure in one third of multiple myeloma patients, according to authors of an article published in the journal Biology of Blood and Marrow Transplantation.

Stem cell transplants are used to replace stem cells that are killed along with myeloma cells during chemotherapy. Transplantation of stem cells collected from the patient’s bone marrow before chemotherapy is known as an autologous transplant.

About 20 percent of patients diagnosed with multiple myeloma also suffer from kidney failure and five percent are dependent on dialysis.

This recent …

A recent Phase 2 study, presented at the European Hematology Association (EHA) meeting, showed that a regimen of Velcade (bortezomib), dexamethasone (Decadron), and doxorubicin (Adriamycin), or VDD, resulted in improved kidney impairment in multiple myeloma patients.

Multiple myeloma patients often face kidney complications including acute light chain induced renal failure (ARF). ARF is a serious complication that can lead to permanent kidney dysfunction and reliance on continual hemodialysis. A normal kidney produces urine for excretion but reabsorbs proteins so they do not leave the body. Anti-myeloma therapy that prevents …

The results of a small-scale clinical study in England suggest that a new hemodialysis procedure may increase the lifespan of multiple myeloma patients suffering from kidney complications.

Kidney failure is a relatively common complication in multiple myeloma patients and can lead to life-threatening health issues. Hemodialysis clinically removes toxic waste substances from the blood, performing the same function as a healthy kidney.

Previous to this study, researchers had predicted that chemotherapy in combination with the new procedure, called high cutoff hemodialysis, might improve the condition of multiple myeloma patients. High cutoff dialysis …

The Food & Drug Administration (FDA) recently approved safety label revisions for the multiple myeloma drug Revlimid (lenalidomide), adding a warning for patients with decreased kidney function. Kidney impairment causes the body to clear Revlimid more slowly than normal, and kidney impaired patients should therefore receive reduced dosages.

Revlimid is a novel therapeutic agent that has proven effective, often in combination with dexamethasone (Decadron), in treating initial and relapsed multiple myeloma. Unlike some drugs that are metabolized (broken down) in the liver, Revlimid actively circulates through the body until the …