For many patients with multiple myeloma, a new generation of drugs and drug combinations is producing better outcomes and fewer side effects. In recent months, several novel therapies studied and tested by Dana-Farber scientists have gained approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) or taken a step toward approval after posting solid results in clinical trials.
The drugs are the fruit of years of research into improving treatment for multiple myeloma, a cancer of white blood cells known as plasma cells in the bone marrow. Many of the new agents are biologically derived — made from substances such as proteins and antibodies found in living things — and target biological mechanisms in a very specific, targeted fashion. Dana-Farber researchers have played a key role in these efforts.
“These are each powerful examples of how next-generation novel therapies translated here at Dana-Farber from bench to bedside are further improving outcomes for our patients, and at a remarkable pace,” says Paul G. Richardson, MD, clinical program leader and director of clinical research at the Jerome Lipper Multiple Myeloma Center at Dana-Farber.