Dr. Martin on the Utility of Aggressive Frontline Treatment 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 utility of aggressive frontline treatment in multiple myeloma.

Patients with multiple myeloma should be treated as aggressively as possible in the frontline setting to debulk their tumor within the first 4 to 8 weeks of therapy, irrespective of age, says Martin.

Many patients present with pain or renal insufficiency, Martin explains. Mitigating these complications early and rapidly will improve the patient’s performance status, allow them to be more ambulatory, and increase the likelihood that they can tolerate frontline therapy at the full dose, Martin says. Notably, newly diagnosed patients who require aggressive frontline therapy can be started on a lower dose if the treatment is too toxic, concludes Martin.