Dr. Callander on the Potential Future of Belantamab Mafodotin in Multiple Myeloma

Natalie S. Callander, MD, a professor of medicine in the Division of Hematology/Oncology at the University of Wisconsin Carbone Cancer Center, discusses the potential future of belantamab mafodotin-blmf (Blenrep) in multiple myeloma.

On August 5, 2020, the FDA granted an accelerated approval to belantamab mafodotin for patients with relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma who have received at least 4 prior therapies, including a CD38-directed monoclonal antibody, a proteasome inhibitor, and an immunomodulatory agent. Currently, belantamab mafodotin is the only BCMA-targeted therapy approved in multiple myeloma; therefore, it is being widely adopted into clinical practice, Callander says. However, as more BCMA-targeted options are introduced to the myeloma armamentarium, the role of belantamab mafodotin may change, adds Callander.

Regarding the agent’s utility, additional data are needed to determine whether belantamab mafodotin could be used as salvage therapy for patients who progress on other BCMA-directed therapies, such as bispecific antibodies or CAR T-cell therapies, Callander explains. Alternatively, these patients may develop a period of refractoriness to BCMA-targeted therapies that would limit the efficacy of belantamab mafodotin. Finally, until the read out of the ongoing DREAMM-9 trial (NCT04091126), the frontline utility of belantamab mafodotin will remain in question, concludes Callander.