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A new treatment is showing promise for people with high-risk smoldering multiple myeloma (SMM). This precancerous condition can progress to active multiple myeloma, a type of blood cancer. High-risk SMM carries a higher likelihood of progression. Results from a phase 3 clinical trial demonstrated that daratumumab, a monoclonal antibody that targets CD38, a protein found on the surface of myeloma cells, significantly reduces the risk of progression to active multiple myeloma and improves overall survival compared to active monitoring. Smoldering multiple myeloma is a condition in which abnormal plasma cells accumulate in the bone marrow but do not display symptoms...

A study by MSK found that a high-fiber, plant-based diet may delay progression to multiple myeloma in at-risk individuals. Researchers at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK) have announced results from the first clinical trial to demonstrate that a high-fiber, plant-based dietary intervention may delay the progression to multiple myeloma—a rare and currently incurable blood cancer that affects the bone marrow. The study involved 20 participants diagnosed with a precancerous blood disorder and an elevated body mass index (BMI), placing them at higher risk for developing multiple myeloma. Over 12 weeks, participants followed a high-fiber, plant-based meal plan and received...

Researchers have reported results from the first-ever clinical trial demonstrating that a high-fiber, plant-based dietary intervention may delay progression to multiple myeloma, a rare and incurable blood cancer affecting the bone marrow. The study enrolled 20 participants with a precancerous blood disorder and an elevated body mass index (BMI) at risk of developing multiple myeloma. They received 12 weeks of high fiber plant-based meals and 24 weeks of coaching. Two participants with progressing disease prior to the study showed a significant improvement of their disease progression trajectory. Additionally, at one year after enrollment, none of the participants had progressed to...

A simple blood test that measures the number of lymphocytes, a type of white blood cell in the body, may predict whether people who have relapsed multiple myeloma are going to respond well to CAR-T immunotherapy, according to research. The paper found patients who had an increase in absolute lymphocyte count (ALC) during the first 15 days after receiving a CAR-T infusion had a higher chance of a complete response and better progression-free survival than patients with a lower ALC at day 15. Knowing the treatment may not work allows doctors to try other options more quickly. Multiple myeloma is...

House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-LA) has issued a statement revealing that he’s been diagnosed with myeloma, a blood cancer. Scalise revealed his diagnosis in a statement to Punchbowl News. The Republican congressman told the outlet: “After a few days of not feeling like myself this past week, I had some blood work done. “The results uncovered some irregularities and after undergoing additional tests, I was diagnosed with Multiple Myeloma, a very treatable blood cancer. “I have now begun treatment, which will continue for the next several months. “I expect to work through this period and intend to return to...

Anew cancer therapy developed at Jerusalem’s Hadassah-University Medical Center had a 90% response rate in a new clinical trial, with over half of patients going into total remission. The CAR-T therapy — which arms the body’s own immune cells to fight cancer — was able to send multiple myeloma, an extremely deadly cancer that impacts the immune system, into remission. The therapy is the result of years worth of experiments conducted by the hospital’s bone-marrow transplant and immunotherapy department, the Jerusalem Post reported. “We have evidence of a very positive overall response rate with minimal side effects, and they are...

Data from confirmatory trial failed to make a compelling case for full FDA approvalJust months after FDA granted accelerated approval of its myeloma drug, Oncopeptides has pulled melphalan flufenamide (melflufen, Pepaxto) from the market. The decision followed an FDA hold on clinical trials of the drug after data from a confirmatory trial showed an increased mortality risk in patients treated with melflufen. The phase III OCEAN study compared melflufen plus dexamethasone and pomalidomide (Pomalyst) plus dexamethasone in patients with triple-refractory multiple myeloma. The trial met the primary endpoint of progression-free survival, but an analysis of overall survival (a secondary endpoint)...

A woman who battled blood cancer for years without success finally halted the disease with turmeric, it has been reported. Dieneke Ferguson is now leading a normal life after giving up on gruelling treatments that failed to stop it. Doctors say her case is the first recorded instance in which a patient has recovered by using the spice after stopping conventional medical treatments. With her myeloma spreading rapidly after three rounds of chemotherapy and four stem cell transplants, the 67-year-old began taking 8g of curcumin a day – one of the main compounds in turmeric. The cancer, which has an...

Occasionally stories come around that push your sadness buttons just enough that your eyes get a bit misty, while at the same time the same story activates your smile sensors because it's about someone doing something good for another person. You know what I'm talking about.

Years ago, a diagnosis of myeloma — cancer of the immune system's white blood cells — often meant the patient had only months to live. Although mortality rates from the various forms of myeloma are still high, research in the past decade has increased the rate of remission and the lifespan of patients, according to Dr. Bart Barlogie. Barlogie, a leading multiple myeloma researcher, discussed efforts to improve survivorship and find a cure for the group of blood diseases Monday at Good Samaritan Medical Center. He is director of the Myeloma Institute at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences....