Current role of immunotherapy in multiple myeloma

Myeloablative chemotherapy improved the results of multiple myeloma treatment but the disease remains incurable. Residual disease eradication is one of the main clues for further improvement of the prognosis of myeloma patients. Interferon alpha maintenance therapy has controversial results. New methods, such as consolidation therapy, antibodies, gene therapy, interleukins, immunotoxins, dendritic cells, vaccines and induction of graft-versus-tumor effect, are tested in the phase I/II clinical trials. This article briefly reviews the new treatment modalities of immunotherapy. Progress in adoptive cellular immunotherapy and progress in induction of graft versus myeloma effect are very promising. We are still not able to transfer very good preclinical results of immunotherapy into clinical results in vivo measured by event free and long-term survivals. Combination of myeloablative therapy followed a new type of immunotherapy focusing on residual disease eradication evaluated in the setting of sensitive disease may be optimal. Such approach could improve the current controversial status of immunotherapy in MM.