title: The impact of race on outcomes of autologous transplantation in patients with multiple myeloma.
abstract: Multiple myeloma is the most common hematologic malignancy in African-Americans, with twice the mortality of Caucasians according to population based data. In the pretransplantation era, comparable conventional therapy has resulted in similar outcomes between African-Americans and Caucasians. However, there has been limited data on outcomes after high dose chemotherapy with autologous stem cell transplantation (ASCT). A retrospective analysis of Caucasian (n = 55) and African-American (n = 36) myeloma patients who underwent ASCT in an equal access health care system in the Department of Defense was performed. Presenting demographic variables, pre/post ASCT characteristics, overall mortality and relapse rates after ASCT were obtained. Progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) were calculated by Kaplan-Meier, and compared via log-rank testing. The median age at diagnosis for African-Americans = 52 years, Caucasians = 56 years (P = 0.009). There were no differences in presenting ISS stage, hemoglobin, calcium, or creatinine. African-Americans presented with higher CRP levels (P = 0.005), and a trend for less skeletal involvement (P = 0.10). Response to induction and ASCT was similar. Median PFS was 60.5 months (95% CI: 31.3-89.8 months) for African-Americans, 43.7 months (95% CI: 33.9-53.5 months) for Caucasians, HR of 1.3 (95% CI: 0.7-2.4), P = 0.46. Median OS was 95.2 months (95% CI: N/A) for African-Americans, 68.5 months (95% CI: 14.2-122.9 months) for Caucasians, HR of 1.4 (95% CI: 0.7-2.9), P = 0.41. In a cohort of myeloma patients who received autologous transplantation in an equal access health care system, there was comparable survival between African-Americans and Caucasians, suggesting that the historical increased mortality for African-Americans may be due to inequalities in access to care.
authors.affiliation: Hematology and Oncology Service, Department of Medicine, Walter Reed Army Medical Center, NW Washington, District of Columbia 20307-500, USA. pramvir@hotmail.com
authors.forename: Pramvir S
authors.initials: PS
authors.lastname: Verma
authors.forename: Robin S
authors.initials: RS
authors.lastname: Howard
authors.forename: Brendan M
authors.initials: BM
authors.lastname: Weiss
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001741:Black or African American / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D000368:Aged; D000971:Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols / Q000627:therapeutic use; D015415:Biomarkers; D002097:C-Reactive Protein / Q000032:analysis; D015331:Cohort Studies; D003131:Combined Modality Therapy; D018572:Disease-Free Survival; D005260:Female; D006297:Health Services Accessibility / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006772:Hospitals, Military / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006801:Humans; D053208:Kaplan-Meier Estimate; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009101:Multiple Myeloma / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000235:genetics* / Q000401:mortality / Q000601:surgery; D036102:Peripheral Blood Stem Cell Transplantation / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D016016:Proportional Hazards Models; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D016019:Survival Analysis; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D044465:White People / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*
chemical_list: D015415:Biomarkers; D002097:C-Reactive Protein