Outcomes of autologous stem cell transplantation for multiple myeloma in Saudi Arabia

In 2015, multiple myeloma (MM) represented 1% of all cancers and about 5% of hematologic malignancies in Saudi cancer registry. We conducted this large study because only small pilot studies have examined MM outcomes after autologous stem-cell transplantation (ASCT). The standard therapy for eligible patients is induction chemotherapy followed by ASCT.

Determine the demographic characteristics of MM patients and the outcomes of ASCT.

Retrospective.

Tumor registry database of major tertiary cancer care center in Riyadh.

We identified patients with newly diagnosed MM who underwent ASCT from October 1997 to March 2015.

The demographic characteristics of MM patients and the outcomes of ASCT in the form of response evaluation, progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS).

169 patients with newly diagnosed MM.

The median age at diagnosis was 51 years (range 23-69) and 100 (59.2%) were male. The most common immunoglobulin (Ig) subtype was IgG-kappa (80 patients; 47.6%). Most patients presented with advanced ISS stage III (75 patients; 47.5%). The cytogenetic analysis was documented in only 87 patients (51.4%); about half (48.3%) had normal cytogenetics by fluorescence in situ hybridization. Deletion 13 was present in 18.4% of patients. In post-induction therapy, 84 patients (50%) achieved a complete response, which increased to 78.1% (132 patients) after ASCT. The median PFS and OS post-transplantation were 30 and 202 months, respectively. Only one patient (<1%) died in the first 100 days after transplantation.

Our transplant eligible MM patients tend to be younger with a higher OS and a low ASCT-related mortality (<1%) than is reported internationally.

Usual limitations of a retrospective analysis using registry-level data; no data on quality of life.

None.