Some promising news as Myeloma Awareness Month kicks off: the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved today a new therapy for patients with relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma. The approval provides an important new treatment option for patients with difficult-to-treat multiple myeloma.
The new therapy, called isatuximab (Sarclisa®), is approved in combination with pomalidomide and dexamethasone for the treatment of adults with multiple myeloma who have received at least two prior therapies, including lenalidomide and a proteasome inhibitor. Isatuximab is a CD38-directed monoclonal antibody that works by helping certain cells in the immune system attack multiple myeloma cells.
LLS research helped support the advancement of this therapy. LLS has helped advance 47 of the 54 blood cancer treatment options approved by the FDA since 2017 to date.
Read the FDA announcement here and learn more about our efforts to lead innovative treatments and care for patients with myeloma on LLS.ORG here.
The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society is closely monitoring the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak that originated in China and is spreading to other countries around the globe. As a health organization, one of our highest priorities is the well-being of the patients we serve – especially as many blood cancer patients are immunocompromised.
We are following vigilantly U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines. While there is an obvious concern right now, we encourage all individuals to follow the four steps below to protect yourself and your loved ones against the flu and other viruses:
Practice good hygiene. Take everyday preventive actions to help stop the spread of germs. Wash your hands frequently, keep tissues and hand sanitizer handy, and routinely clean your home and office. And make sure to be extra diligent about cough and sneeze “etiquette.” Encourage those closest to you to also practice good hygiene to limit your exposure to germs.
Make sure you’re up-to-date on vaccines. Talk to your doctor about the vaccines you need, and also ask them if your loved ones should receive vaccines to help reduce your risk of contracting an illness. Immunizations are especially important because cancer treatments weaken the body’s immune system. The CDC recommends everyone six months of age or older get the flu vaccine each year. Note, cancer patients should only get the shot and not the nasal spray since the spray contains a live virus. You can find the immunizations schedule recommended by the CDC for people with weakened immune systems, such as cancer survivors, here.
If you develop symptoms, talk to your doctor. If you develop COVID-19 symptoms, contact your healthcare provider about your symptoms and your travel or exposure to a COVID-19 patient. According to the CDC, symptoms may appear in as few as two days or as long as 14 days after exposure. Symptoms include fever, cough, and shortness of breath.
Talk to your doctor if you have travel plans. CDC recommends that travelers avoid nonessential travel to certain destinations including China and Iran. If you have upcoming travel plans, especially outside of the United States, talk to your doctor.
Some cancer patients may be worried about the supply of their treatments that come from overseas. For example, Imbruvica (Ibrutinib) is manufactured outside of the United States. However, its manufacturer Pharmacyclics said that they are monitoring the situation closely and at this time do not expect any impact on their product supply. As of now, no other manufacturers have stated that this outbreak will have an impact on supply. We are in close touch with manufacturers and will post an update if this changes.
At LLS, the health and safety of cancer patients is our top priority, so we will continue to closely monitor this outbreak to ensure we provide you with up-to-date information. In the meantime, you can also visit the CDC website where you can find frequently asked questions.
This is part of a periodic series of Q&A’s with LLS-funded researchers. Dr. Abdel-Wahab of Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center focuses on an area of research called epigenetics – chemical modifications that regulate (switch on and off) gene activity. He is studying how these processes drive the development of acute myeloid leukemia and other blood cancers. He currently holds a Career Development Program grant from LLS, a program that supports scientists earlier in their careers.
Q. What is the focus of your research and its primary goal?
My research is focused on understanding the genetic changes in leukemias and lymphomas in hopes of developing new selective treatments for patients targeting these cancerous changes. We have contributed to studies in acute myeloid leukemia, myelodysplastic syndromes, chronic lymphocytic leukemia, hairy leukemia, and histiocytic neoplasms. Among our findings is that there is frequently an overlap of two mutations in AML patients, of the SRSF2 and IDH2 genes. This could open the door to more targeted approaches to treating patients who have both of these mutations.
Q. How will blood cancer patients benefit from your work?
We hope that our studies will result in the discovery of new therapeutic approaches for blood cancer patients as well as new biomarkers for the treatment of blood cancers. To date, our work has helped result in the FDA approval of drugs for histiocytosis patients and several drugs in early phase clinical trials for patients with the myelodysplastic syndromes and acute myeloid leukemia.
Q. Why were you drawn to blood cancer research?
I have always been fascinated by the blood system and the immune system. Blood cancers develop due to alterations in the normal development of blood and immune cells and hence the study of blood cancers was a natural fit for my interests. I am also highly motivated by the fact that there is still a great need for better treatments for patients with many forms of blood cancer such as acute myeloid leukemia and the myelodysplastic syndromes, in particular.
Q. How has LLS helped advance your research career?
LLS has supported me in every stage of my career- from my time as a trainee to my current position as a mid-career faculty member. In addition, LLS has supported multiple trainees in many labs, several of whom have gone on to start their own research labs at universities and hospitals in the U.S., France, Japan, and South Korea.
Q. What makes you want to get out of bed in the morning?
I am motivated by the need to develop more effective and safer therapies for patients with blood cancers. I am so excited by the prospect that there are many mysteries underlying the development of blood cancers which have yet to be uncovered-- many of which could result in amazing new treatments for patients.
