Dr. Martin on the Safety Profile of Bispecific T-Cell Engagers in Multiple Myeloma

Thomas G. Martin, MD, clinical professor of medicine, Adult Leukemia and Bone Marrow Transplantation Program, associate director, Myeloma Program, co-leader, Hematopoietic Malignancies Program, Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of California, San Francisco, discusses the safety profile of bispecific T-cell engagers (BiTEs) in multiple myeloma.

BiTEs are generally very well tolerated by patients with multiple myeloma, says Martin. In the frontline setting, agents that are associated with significant toxicities, such as neuropathy, cardiac toxicities, or renal toxicities, may not be optimal because patients with multiple myeloma often have good prognoses, Martin explains.

As such, BiTEs could be good additions to the frontline armamentarium because they could limit toxicity for patients, Martin says. Although the agents confer mild cytokine release syndrome and neurologic toxicity, few treatment-related deaths have been reported in the clinical trials evaluating these agents, concludes Martin.