Advances & future prospects in newly diagnosed multiple myeloma patients

The overall survival (OS) in multiple myeloma (MM) has almost quadrupled over the past 2 decades. This improvement could be attributed to the introduction of novel agents in the schema of therapy which includes the following phases: induction, high dose melphalan/stem cell transplant, optional posttransplant consolidation and maintenance (Barlogie Total-Therapy schema). Because disease relapse is inevitable, additional treatment is generally needed to achieve remission. Emerging evidence suggests that assessment of minimal residual disease status following induction or autologous stem cell transplant could be predictive of duration of progression-free survival as well as OS. In an effort to prolong duration of first remission, various drug combinations are being evaluated in the front-line setting. The purpose of this paper is to provide a succint review of the current treatment paradigm of newly diagnosed MM and highlight the preliminary findings from some of the ongoing clinical trials which are likely to change current practice.