title: Therapeutic approaches for newly diagnosed multiple myeloma patients in the era of novel drugs.
abstract: The treatment of newly diagnosed multiple myeloma (MM) has evolved rapidly over recent years. The availability of new effective drugs with novel mechanisms of action, such as thalidomide, lenalidomide and bortezomib in the last decade, has resulted in a new scenario expected to impact favorably on the outcome of patients with MM. The introduction of new drugs in the treatment of patients eligible for autologous stem cell transplantation (ASCT) has allowed for a significant increase of complete response rate with a positive impact on progression-free survival. In patients not eligible for ASCT, randomized trials have shown that both thalidomide and bortezomib when combined with melphalan and prednisone (MP) are superior to MP and are now considered the standard of care. Ongoing trials are assessing whether MP plus lenalidomide or the combination of lenalidomide plus dexamethasone should be considered an attractive treatment option, while additional studies are needed to determine the role of routine maintenance or consolidation therapy with these new drugs. This new therapeutic armamentarium in light of adequate prophylaxis and supportive care allows clinicians to greatly improve the survival perspectives for both young and elderly patients. In this review, we report updated data for the front-line therapy of MM, examining the role of new drugs either when administered as induction therapy before ASCT in younger patients or when combined with alkylating agents for the treatment of older patients. The most relevant articles on therapy of MM published from November 1982 to January 2010 (selected through PubMed), and recent meeting abstracts were used as sources for this review.
authors.affiliation: Divisione di Ematologia, Azienda Ospedaliera di Cosenza, Cosenza, Italy. fortunato_morabito@tin.it
authors.forename: Fortunato
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Morabito
authors.forename: Massimo
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gentile
authors.forename: Carla
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Mazzone
authors.forename: Sara
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Bringhen
authors.forename: Ernesto
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Vigna
authors.forename: Eugenio
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Lucia
authors.forename: Anna G
authors.initials: AG
authors.lastname: Recchia
authors.forename: Francesco D
authors.initials: FD
authors.lastname: Raimondo
authors.forename: Pellegrino
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Musto
authors.forename: Antonio
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Palumbo
mesh_terms: D000970:Antineoplastic Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D000971:Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols / Q000627:therapeutic use; D018572:Disease-Free Survival; D006801:Humans; D009101:Multiple Myeloma / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000188:drug therapy*; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D000970:Antineoplastic Agents