Initial therapy of multiple myeloma patients who are not candidates for stem cell transplantation

Multiple myeloma patients deemed to not be candidates for high-dose therapy followed by stem cell rescue who nonetheless need chemotherapy have traditionally received an oral regimen combining melphalan and prednisone. With the advent of novel agents, however, such as immunomodulatory drugs and proteasome inhibitors that are active in the relapsed/refractory setting, there has been an impetus to incorporate these new options into front-line therapy. Several phase II studies have recently revealed that addition of either thalidomide, lenalidomide, or bortezomib to melphalan and prednisone increased the overall and complete response rates, albeit at the cost of some increased toxicity. Randomized phase III studies of melphalan and prednisone with thalidomide have already shown that, compared to melphalan and prednisone alone, the three-drug regimen prolonged time to progression and overall survival in this population, thereby defining a new standard of care. Moreover, our increasing knowledge of the molecular role that cytogenetic abnormalities play in the biology of multiple myeloma and our growing chemotherapeutic armamentarium are beginning to allow us to rationally select therapies based on these characteristics of each patient's disease. Such a risk- and molecular-adapted strategy to the therapy of multiple myeloma promises to revolutionize and personalize our care of these patients and bring us closer to a cure for this disease.