Paul G. Richardson, MD, clinical program leader and director of clinical research, Jerome Lipper Multiple Myeloma Center, and institute physician, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, discusses new directions in multiple myeloma.

Progress is going to happen incrementally, explains Richardson; there is not necessarily going to be a “home run” in any particular setting. CAR T-cell therapy has induced high response rates and strong proof-of-principle that harnessing the immune system is crucial to success in myeloma treatment. However, the duration of disease control with CAR T-cell therapy is less than what had been anticipated, given what has been seen with leukemia and lymphoma, adds Richardson.

The approach should not be viewed as a failure, but rather an expectation given the nature of the disease. The hope is that newer agents can further prolong survival, enabling the ability to build on these types of successes and induce more durable responses. Looking to the future, there are very exciting CELMoDs which are the most potent immunomodulatory drugs that have been used to date, says Richardson. CC-220 and CC-480 are 2 promising examples, he concludes.