Myeloma

Source: rarediseases.about.com --- 30 days ago
Information about multiple Myeloma (blood cell cancer), its symptoms, diagnosis, and treatment. ...

Source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov --- 29 days ago
Related Articles Plasma exchange for Myeloma kidney: cast(s) away? Kidney Int. 2008 Jun;73(11):1211-3 Authors: Clark WF, Garg AX Leung et al. (this issue) present a retrospective study of 40 patients. Observations in 14/40 led to the suggestion of restitution of plasma exchange for light-chain responsive, biopsy-proven Myeloma kidney until a better randomized control trial (RCT) is constructed. A careful analysis of their study and a recent RCT suggest little difference in outcome between plasma exchange and control groups. The analysis supports restitution of a better RCT of plasma exchange for Myeloma kidney rather than off-label use. PMID: 18480853 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE] ...

Source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov --- 40 days ago
Related Articles Duration of survival in patients with Myeloma treated with thalidomide. N Engl J Med. 2008 Jul 10;359(2):210-2 Authors: Barlogie B, Shaughnessy JD, Crowley J PMID: 18614793 [PubMed - in process] ...

Source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov --- 18 days ago
Related Articles Seven year median time to progression with thalidomide for smoldering Myeloma: Partial response identifies subset requiring earlier salvage therapy for symptomatic disease. Blood. 2008 Jul 31; Authors: Barlogie B, van Rhee F, Shaughnessy JD, Epstein J, Yaccoby S, Pineda-Roman M, Hollmig K, Alsayed Y, Hoering A, Szymonifka J, Anaissie E, Petty N, Kumar NS, Srivastava G, Jenkins B, Crowley J, Zeldis JB Smoldering multiple Myeloma (SMM) is usually followed expectantly without therapy. We conducted a phase II trial in 76 eligible patients with SMM, combining thalidomide (THAL, 200mg/d) with monthly pamidronate. In the first 2 years, THAL dose reduction was required in 86% and drug was discontinued in 50%. Within 4 years, 63% improved including 25% qualifying for partial response (PR); by then, 34 patients had progressed and 17 required salvage therapy. Unexpectedly, attaining PR status was associated with a shorter time to salvage therapy for disease progression (p<0.001), perhaps reflecting greater drug sensitivity of more aggressive disease. Low beta-2-microglobulin levels <2mg/L were independently associated with superior overall and event-free survival. Four-year survival and event-free survival estimates of 91% and 60% together with a median post-salvage therapy survival of more than 5 years justify the conduct of a prospective randomized clinical trial to determine the clinical value of pre-emptive therapy in SMM. Tr ...

Source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov --- 4 hours ago
Related Articles Clinical impact of discordance in serum albumin measurements on Myeloma international staging system. J Clin Oncol. 2008 Aug 20;26(24):4051-2 Authors: Kapoor P, Snozek CL, Colby C, Larson DR, Katzmann JA, Rajkumar SV, Greipp PR PMID: 18711203 [PubMed - in process] ...

Source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov --- 15 days ago
Related Articles Concurrent B-cell chronic lymphocytic leukemia and multiple Myeloma treated successfully with lenalidomide. Leuk Res. 2008 Aug 1; Authors: Srinivasan S, Schiffer CA The occurrence of multiple Myeloma and chronic lymphocytic leukemia in the same patient is very uncommon. The immunomodulatory agent lenalidomide has been shown to have high response rates in multiple Myeloma and appears to be quite active in advanced CLL. We report two patients with concurrent CLL and MM who were both treated successfully with lenalidomide. PMID: 18676017 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher] ...

Source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov --- 13 days ago
Related Articles A multicenter, randomized clinical trial comparing zoledronic acid versus observation in patients with asymptomatic Myeloma. Cancer. 2008 Aug 5; Authors: Musto P, Petrucci MT, Bringhen S, Guglielmelli T, Caravita T, Bongarzoni V, Andriani A, D'Arena G, Balleari E, Pietrantuono G, Boccadoro M, Palumbo A, BACKGROUND.: Bisphosphonates (BPs) are effective in the prevention and treatment of skeletal-related events (SREs) in patients with symptomatic Myeloma who are receiving chemotherapy. Recent data also suggest a possible antineoplastic activity of BPs. Few studies published to date have explored the role of BPs in patients with untreated, asymptomatic Myeloma (AM). No data are available on the efficacy of zoledronic acid in these patients. METHODS.: The authors conducted a prospective, multicenter, open-label, phase 3, randomized trial comparing the administration of zoledronic acid versus simple observation in patients with AM. One-hundred sixty-three patients were enrolled and randomized (1:1) to receive zoledronic acid (n = 81 patients) or not to receive zoledronic acid (n = 82 patients) for 1 year at a dose of 4 mg monthly as a single, 15-minute, intravenous infusion. RESULTS.: After a median follow-up of 64.7 person-months, 44.4% of patients in the zoledronic acid group and 45.1% of the control group progressed to 'symptomatic' Myeloma requiring chemotherapy (P = .9307). The median time to progression was 67 months a ...

Source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov --- 11 days ago
Related Articles The effects of thalidomide on chemotactic migration of multiple Myeloma cell lines. Int J Lab Hematol. 2008 Jun;30(3):220-9 Authors: Fuchida SI, Shimazaki C, Hirai H, Akamatsu S, Yamada N, Uchida R, Okano A, Okamoto M, Inaba T, Taniwaki M We examined the effect of thalidomide and dexamethasone on the migration of multiple Myeloma (MM) cell lines, U266, RPMI8226, and NCI-H929, using chemotaxis chamber plates. U266 underwent chemotactic migration in response to stromal-cell derived factor-1 alpha (SDF-1alpha), and other cell lines underwent random migration in response to SDF-1alpha or monocyte chemotactic protein-1 alpha. Following preincubation with 1 mug/ml thalidomide, the cell lines showed reduced migratory capacity in response to SDF-1alpha. Concerning the corresponding receptors, CXC chemokine receptor 4 was detected only on the surface of U266, by flow cytometry, whereas chemokine (C-C motif) receptor 2 was not detected on all three cell lines. Moreover, decreased migration by thalidomide was not accompanied by altered expression of the corresponding receptors of each cell line. This is the first report to show the effects of thalidomide on the migration of MM cell lines. The results suggest that the inhibition of chemotactic migration might be one of the mechanisms of the success of thalidomide in controlling MM. PMID: 18479301 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE] ...

Source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov --- 7 days ago
Related Articles New treatments in multiple Myeloma: beyond optimal treatment. Ann Oncol. 2008 Jul;19 Suppl 5:v68-70 Authors: Harousseau JL PMID: 18611904 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE] ...

Source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov --- 6 days ago
Related Articles Current therapy of Myeloma induced renal failure. Leuk Lymphoma. 2008 May;49(5):833-4 Authors: Gertz MA PMID: 18452070 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE] ...

Source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov --- 4 days ago
CC-Chemokine ligand 20/macrophage inflammatory protein-3alpha and CC-chemokine receptor 6 are overexpressed in Myeloma microenvironment related to osteolytic bone lesions. Cancer Res. 2008 Aug 15;68(16):6840-50 Authors: Giuliani N, Lisignoli G, Colla S, Lazzaretti M, Storti P, Mancini C, Bonomini S, Manferdini C, Codeluppi K, Facchini A, Rizzoli V The expression of the chemokine CC-chemokine ligand 20 (CCL20)/macrophage inflammatory protein (MIP)-3alpha and its receptor CC-chemokine receptor 6 (CCR6) by multiple Myeloma (MM) and microenvironment cells and their potential relationship with osteoclast (OC) formation and osteolytic bone lesions in MM patients was investigated in this study. First, we found that MM cells rarely produce CCL20/MIP-3alpha but up-regulate its production by bone marrow (BM) osteoprogenitor cells and osteoblasts in coculture with the involvement of soluble factors as interleukin-1beta and tumor necrosis factor alpha. MM cells also stimulate both CCL20/MIP-3alpha and CCR6 expression by OCs in coculture. Thereafter, we showed that CCL20/MIP-3alpha significantly increases both the number of multinucleated tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase-positive OCs and receptor activator of nuclear factor-kappaB-positive OC progenitor cells similar to CCL3/MIP-1alpha. Finally, we found that blocking anti-CCL20/MIP-3alpha and anti-CCR6 antibodies significantly inhibits MM-induced OC formation. In vitro data were further expand ...

Source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov --- 16 days ago
Related Articles Dendritic cells mediate the induction of polyfunctional human IL17 producing cells (Th17-1 cells) enriched in the bone marrow of Myeloma patients. Blood. 2008 Jul 30; Authors: Dhodapkar KM, Barbuto S, Matthews P, Kukreja A, Mazumder A, Vesole D, Jagannath S, Dhodapkar MV IL17 producing (Th17) cells are a distinct lineage of T helper cells that regulate immunity and inflammation. The role of antigen presenting cells in the induction of Th17 cells in humans remains to be fully defined. Here we show that human DCs are efficient inducers of Th17 cells in culture, including antigen specific Th17 cells. Although most freshly isolated circulating human Th17 cells secrete IL17 alone or with IL2, those induced by DCs are polyfunctional and coexpress IL17 and IFNgamma (Th17-1 cells). The capacity of DCs to expand Th17-1 cells is enhanced upon DC maturation and mature DCs are superior to monocytes for the expansion of autologous Th17 cells. In Myeloma, wherein tumors are infiltrated by DCs, Th17 cells are enriched in the bone marrow relative to circulation. Bone marrow from Myeloma patients contains higher proportion of Th17-1 cells compared to the marrow in preneoplastic gammopathy (MGUS). Uptake of apoptotic but not necrotic Myeloma tumor cells by DCs leads to enhanced induction of Th17-1 cells. These data demonstrate the capacity of DCs to induce expansion of polyfunctional IL17 producing T cells in humans, and suggest a role ...

Source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov --- 16 days ago
Related Articles Stem cell mobilization with cyclophosphamide overcomes the suppressive effect of lenalidomide therapy on stem cell collection in multiple Myeloma. Biol Blood Marrow Transplant. 2008 Jul;14(7):795-8 Authors: Mark T, Stern J, Furst JR, Jayabalan D, Zafar F, LaRow A, Pearse RN, Harpel J, Shore T, Schuster MW, Leonard JP, Christos PJ, Coleman M, Niesvizky R A total of 28 treatment-naïve patients with stage II or III multiple Myeloma (MM) were treated with the combination of clarithromycin, lenalidomide, and dexamethasone (BiRD). Stem cells were collected following granulocyte-colony stimulating factor (G-CSF) or cyclophosphamide (Cy) plus G-CSF mobilization at maximum response. Sufficient stem cells for 2 autologous stem cell transplants were collected from all patients mobilized with Cy plus G-CSF, versus 33% mobilized with G-CSF alone (P < .0001). The duration of prior lenalidomide therapy did not correlate with success of stem cell harvests (P = .91). In conclusion, Cy can be added to G-CSF for stem cell mobilization to successfully overcome the suppressive effect of prior treatment with lenalidomide. PMID: 18541199 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE] ...

Source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov --- 16 days ago
Tumor Cell Gene Expression Changes Following Short-term In vivo Exposure to Single Agent Chemotherapeutics are Related to Survival in Multiple Myeloma. Clin Cancer Res. 2008 Aug 1;14(15):4821-9 Authors: Burington B, Barlogie B, Zhan F, Crowley J, Shaughnessy JD Changes in global gene expression patterns in tumor cells following in vivo therapy may vary by treatment and provide added or synergistic prognostic power over pretherapy gene expression profiles (GEP). This molecular readout of drug-cell interaction may also point to mechanisms of action/resistance. In newly diagnosed patients with multiple Myeloma (MM), microarray data were obtained on tumor cells prior to and 48 hours after in vivo treatment using dexamethasone (n = 45) or thalidomide (n = 42); in the case of relapsed MM, microarray data were obtained prior to (n = 36) and after (n = 19) lenalidomide administration. Dexamethasone and thalidomide induced both common and unique GEP changes in tumor cells. Combined baseline and 48-hour changes in GEP in a subset of genes, many related to oxidative stress and cytoskeletal dynamics, were predictive of outcome in newly diagnosed MM patients receiving tandem transplants. Thalidomide-altered genes also changed following lenalidomide exposure and predicted event-free and overall survival in relapsed patients receiving lenalidomide as a single agent. Combined with baseline molecular features, changes in GEP following short-term single- ...

Source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov --- 17 days ago
Related Articles p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase inhibitor LY2228820 enhances bortezomib-induced cytotoxicity and inhibits osteoclastogenesis in multiple Myeloma; therapeutic implications. Br J Haematol. 2008 May;141(5):598-606 Authors: Ishitsuka K, Hideshima T, Neri P, Vallet S, Shiraishi N, Okawa Y, Shen Z, Raje N, Kiziltepe T, Ocio EM, Chauhan D, Tassone P, Munshi N, Campbell RM, Dios AD, Shih C, Starling JJ, Tamura K, Anderson KC The interaction between multiple Myeloma (MM) cells and the bone marrow (BM) microenvironment induces proliferation and survival of MM cells, as well as osteoclastogenesis. This study investigated the therapeutic potential of novel p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (p38MAPK) inhibitor LY2228820 (LY) in MM. Although cytotoxicity against MM cell lines was modest, LY significantly enhanced the toxicity of bortezomib by down-regulating bortezomib-induced heat shock protein 27 phosphorylation. LY inhibited interleukin-6 secretion from long term cultured-BM stromal cells and BM mononuclear cells (BMMNCs) derived from MM patients in remission. LY also inhibited macrophage inflammatory protein-1alpha secretion from patient MM cells and BMMNCs as well as normal CD14 positive osteoclast precursor cells. Moreover, LY significantly inhibited in vitro osteoclastogenesis from CD14 positive cells induced by macrophage-colony stimulating factor and soluble receptor activator of nuclear factor-kappaB ligand. Finall ...

Source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov --- 19 days ago
Related Articles Effective prophylaxis of thromboembolic complications with low molecular weight heparin in relapsed multiple Myeloma patients treated with lenalidomide and dexamethasone. Ann Hematol. 2008 Jul 31; Authors: Klein U, Kosely F, Hillengaß J, Hundemer M, Schmitt S, Neben K, Moehler T, Hegenbart U, Ho AD, Goldschmidt H The immunomodulatory drugs thalidomide and lenalidomide have enhanced activity in patients with multiple Myeloma (MM). Their efficacy is increased with the addition of dexamethasone, but significant rates of venous thromboembolism (VTE) are a severe side effect. Based on this evidence, it is recommended that VTE prophylaxis be prescribed in these patients. However, the optimal prophylaxis remains controversial. We analyzed 45 patients with relapsed MM who were treated with lenalidomide and dexamethasone at our center. The 45 patients received a total number of 192 cycles, respectively a median of three cycles; the median dosage of dexamethasone was 240 mg per cycle. All patients received prophylactic anticoagulation with low molecular weight heparin (LMWH). Moreover, 86.6% of patients had at least one additional VTE risk factor beside the Myeloma-related risk. One out of 45 patients developed a deep vein thrombosis and pulmonary embolism. None of the other 44 patients had clinical signs of thrombosis or embolism and none of all patients experienced complications or side effects due to anticoagulation. Our resul ...

Source: www.medicinenet.com --- 41 days ago
Title: Thalidomide Continues to Show Benefits Against Myeloma Category: Health News Created: 7/10/2008 2:00:00 AM Last Editorial Review: 7/10/2008 ...

Source: www.associatedcontent.com --- 23 days ago
Help Team Dave as they participate in the MMRF Race for Research ...

Source: www.medicalnewstoday.com --- 2 days ago
The Multiple Myeloma Research Consortium (MMRC) announced the initiation of a four-drug combination study with REVLIMID® (lenalidomide), VELCADE® (bortezomib) for Injection, DOXIL® (doxorubicin HCl liposome injection) and dexamethasone for the treatment of multiple Myeloma in patients who are previously untreated. ...

Source: www.medicalnewstoday.com --- 2 hours ago
Bristol-Myers Squibb Company (NYSE: BMY) and PDL BioPharma, Inc. (NASDAQ: PDLI) today announced an agreement for the global development and commercialization of PDL BioPharma's anti-CS1 antibody, elotuzumab, previously known as HuLuc63, currently in Phase I development for multiple Myeloma. ...