Multiple myeloma patient Stacy Erholtz’s stunning response to the Mayo Clinic’s measles vaccine in 2015 for her multi-relapsed multiple myeloma was a surprise to everyone, including Stacy. But when the vaccine was used in other myeloma patients, they did not see similar responses. Why? A new study by myeloma French researchers showed that myeloma patients with[...]

I believe this might be the best kept secret at ASH 2018. Abstract 801 – Carfilzomib, Pomalidomide and Dexamethasone (KPd) in Patients with Multiple Myeloma Refractory to Bortezomib and Lenalidomide. the EMN011 Trial   Pieter Sonneveld, Professor of Hematology and head of the Department of Hematology at the Erasmus MC Cancer Institute and Professor of Hematology at the[...]

Dr. Fonseca of Mayo Clinic, Phoenix is a world leader in myeloma research and treatment.  Dr. Fonseca has chosen his 5 Best of the Best myeloma abstracts of the 828 myeloma abstracts presented.   Dr. Fonseca is the Getz Family Professor of Cancer and Professor of Medicine, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine. He is the[...]

Luciano J Costa, Associate Professor of Medicine Blood and Marrow Transplantation and Cell Therapy Program, University of Alabama Birmingham presented the results of a phase 2 clinical trial for Venetoclax in combination with Carfilzomib and Dexamethasone.   In 2016 the FDA approved Venclexta (venetoclax) for the treatment of patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) who have a chromosomal[...]

Patients who combine daratumumab (Dara) with a bortezomib-lenalidomide-low dose dexamethasone (VRd) regimen have deeper, more durable responses to their treatment, experience few significant adverse events and the four drug combination does not affect eligibility for stem cell transplants. Peter Voorhees from the Levine Cancer Institute reported the findings of a phase 2 study in an[...]

None of the 50 smoldering myeloma patients with high-risk genetics who took part in a phase 2 clinical trial of early intervention with a combination of elotuzumab, lenalidomide and dexamethasone progressed to active myeloma and monitoring of them is ongoing. Patients who took part in the trial ranged in age from 29-79 and were found[...]

For most of us, we want to be at a football game rather than see pictures of the game.  ASH is much the same when it comes to the Oral vs. Poster sessions.  If you attend some of the many meetings at ASH, even the ones at 7:30 am, the events can be standing room[...]

Michael Thompson, MD, PhD, at the Vince Lombardi  Cancer Clinic in Milwaukee, WI is board certified in hematology and oncology. He is an active clinical researcher whose interests include hematologic or blood cancers (lymphoma, myeloma, leukemia and myelodysplastic syndrome).  When my web site myelomasurvival.com was started in 2012, one of the first patients who called[...]

A need exists to further stratify myeloma patients according to genetic and blood signatures in order to better predict patient survival rates, according to Dr. Dirk Hose (Hoe-zeh), from the University of Heidelberg, Germany, at the annual ASH meeting in San Diego on Sunday, December 2. Hose led off six lectures on possible biological measurements[...]

Dr. Meletios A Dimopoulos presented an abstract which compared the use of Ixaomib to a placebo for maintenance after a stem cell transplant.  This clinical trial was called Tourmaline-MM3, and was chosen as a top 5 abstract by 2 of the 4 doctors who had provided their “Best of the Best” abstracts. Abstract 301 –[...]