Tarek H. Mouhieddine, MD, on Relapsed/Refractory Multiple Myeloma and Bispecific Antibodies
2021 ASH Annual Meeting & Exposition
Tarek H. Mouhieddine, MD, of The Mount Sinai Hospital and The Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, discusses data that suggest patients with heavily pretreated, predominantly triple-class refractory multiple myeloma who relapse after treatment with bispecific antibodies may still have good outcomes when sequentially treating with other immunologic treatments (Abstract 821).
The ASCO Post Staff
Nikhil C. Munshi, MD, PhD, of Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, discusses the findings from a large nationwide Veterans Affairs study, which showed that, for patients with multiple myeloma, the effectiveness of the COVID-19 vaccine is reduced, likely due to patients’ immunosuppression. Dr. Munshi describes what next steps should be taken (Abstract 400).
The ASCO Post Staff
Andrew Matthews, MD, of the Abramson Cancer Center, University of Pennsylvania, discusses findings from a retrospective study at an academic institution, which showed there was no statistically significant difference in overall survival between induction with CPX-351 and venetoclax/azacitidine for adults with acute myeloid leukemia. Prospective studies to confirm similar effectiveness with careful attention to side effects, quality of life, and impact on transplant outcomes may help clinicians decide between these therapies (Abstract 795).
The ASCO Post Staff
Anil Aktas-Samur, PhD, of Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, discusses study findings on the genomic characterization of non-progressor smoldering multiple myeloma, results that may provide a molecular definition of the disease as well as its risk-driving features. Combining this low-risk model with current high-risk models may possibly improve clinical trials for patients with this early precursor to myeloma (Abstract 545).
The ASCO Post Staff
Masayuki Umeda, MD, of St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, discusses his research which showed that UBTF-TD (upstream binding transcription factor-tandem duplications) define a unique subtype of acute myeloid leukemia that previously lacked a clear oncogenic driver. UBTF-TD is associated with FLT3-ITD and WT1 mutations, adolescent age, and poor outcomes. These alterations are critical for future risk-stratification for this patient cohort.
The ASCO Post Staff
Eunice S. Wang, MD, of Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, discusses phase III results showing that gilteritinib and azacitidine led to significantly higher composite complete response rates in patients with newly diagnosed FLT3-mutant acute myeloid leukemia who are ineligible for intensive induction chemotherapy. Overall survival was similar to that of azacitidine alone (Abstract 700).
