A poster presented at the 64th ASH Annual Meeting and Exposition considered the impact of B-cell maturation antigen (BCMA) therapy on survival outcomes for patients with penta-refractory multiple myeloma.
What They Did:
Researchers retrospectively reviewed data from 78 patients with multiple myeloma refractory to two immunomodulatory drugs, two proteasome inhibitors, and an anti–CD38 monoclonal antibody.
55% of patients (n = 43) had prior exposure to BCMA-directed therapy, while 45% (n = 35) were BCMA-naive.
The most common forms of BCMA therapy were belantamab mafadotin (n = 15), chimeric antigen receptor T-cell therapy (n = 9), and BCMA monoclonal antibodies (n = 6). Eleven patients were exposed to more than one BCMA-directed therapy.
What They Found:
The median interval from diagnosis to penta-refractory state for patients treated with BCMA-directed therapy was 66 months (range, 4-176), compared to 48 months (range, 14-135) for BCMA-naive patients.
Exposure to BCMA therapies was associated with significant overall survival improvements in penta-refractory patients (median, 17 months vs 6 months; P < .0001).
Disease progression accounted for 89% of deaths among penta-refractory patients.
Why it Matters:
Penta-refractory disease status remains associated with worse outcomes in comparison to patients without penta-refractory disease. BCMA-directed therapies may extend survival in this patient population.
Prospective studies should investigate the link between receipt of BCMA-directed therapy and OS in patients with penta-refractory multiple myeloma.
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Disclosures: Some researchers declared financial ties to drugmakers. See full abstract for details.