Numerous treatment options are available to multiple myeloma patients, with the therapeutic objective of inducing complete remission (CR) or at least very good partial remission (VGPR).

In the American Society of Hematology's recent Education Program Book, "Hematology," researcher Jean-Luc Harousseau compares treatment regimens with and without a stem cell transplant component. In addition, he examines the mounting belief that complete remission, a potentially unreliable prognostic indicator, should cease to be the therapeutic goal in all situations.

Comparison: Treatment With and Without Stem Cell Transplant

During initial treatment after …

Update: The results published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute article have been called into question in a letter to the Editor. Based on results of the meta-analysis, researchers concluded that single and tandem stem cell transplantations produced comparable overall survival and event-free survival rates. The meta-analysis included a study published by the Abdelkefi research group that demonstrated a “dramatic benefit” of single transplantation over tandem. However, this study has been retracted because it contains “biologically implausible findings.” As a result, the summary results and conclusions published in the …

Long-term follow-up results of two stem cell transplantation trials were presented at the 2008 American Society of Hematology (ASH) meeting. The trials were conducted from April 2000 to April 2004 in high risk de novo multiple myeloma patients. De novo multiple myeloma refers to the first occurrence of cancer in the body.

The two trials compared autologous transplantation followed by non-myeloablative allotransplantation (trial IFM99-03) with tandem (double) autologous transplantation (trial IFM99-04).  In the autologous transplantation procedure, a patient's stem cells are collected and stored prior to chemotherapy and later returned to the …

At the American Society of Hematology (ASH) meeting this Monday, researchers from Italy reported the positive results of a Phase 2 clinical trial combining Velcade (bortezomib) with thalidomide (Thalomid) and dexamethasone (VTD) for the treatment of newly diagnosed multiple myeloma patients. The drug combination was used as an induction regimen to reduce the tumor in preparation for melphalan-based autologous stem cell transplantation.

Chemotherapy combined with autologous stem cell transplantation – stem cells collected and returned to the same individual - is a typical treatment option in newly …

Research shows that outpatient stem cell transplants have higher survival rates than many inpatient alternatives for multiple myeloma patients.

In one study, only three of 272 patients had died by the 100th day after the transplants. Overall, only a one-percent mortality rate, a fifth of that of inpatient programs, is reported for outpatient programs.

One distinctive representative of outpatient treatment is the Mayo program. Relying on a team managed by two physicians with a staff of nurses and physician assistants, the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., accepts patients 76 years old or …

Researchers have achieved major strides in the treatment of multiple myeloma in the last ten years with the use of drugs such as thalidomide (marketed as Thalomid), Revlimid (lenalidomide), and Velcade (bortezomib). In conjunction with high-dose chemotherapy and stem cell transplantation, these various therapeutic options have increased patients’ treatment response and remission rates.

In a recent clinical trial involving Total Treatment 3 (TT3), 80% of patients who received up-front chemotherapy, transplantation, thalidomide, and Velcade achieved nearly complete remission. Of those, 90% have …

Hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) is the transplantation of blood stem cells derived from the bone marrow (that is, bone marrow transplantation) or blood. Stem cell transplantation is a medical procedure in the fields of hematology and oncology, most often performed for people with diseases of the blood, bone marrow, or certain types of cancer.

Stem cell transplantation was pioneered using bone-marrow-derived stem cells by a team at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center from the 1950s through the 1970s led by E. Donnall Thomas, whose work was later recognized with a …