HCN Oncology Essentials: Multiple Myeloma | Debate: Marrow vs. Peripheral Blood | Soft Tissue SarcomaSeptember 07, 2021 | Oncology Hematology Bispecific Antibody Shows Promise in R/R Multiple Myeloma Publication: The LancetDesign: Open-label, single-arm study of 157 patients who had undergone a median of six previous lines of therapy and who received at least one dose of teclistamab; 40 patients received the recommended phase II dose of teclistamabResults: Of the 40 receiving the phase II dose, 58% achieved a very good partial response or better; 40% achieved a complete response or better Read full article Hematology Marrow or Peripheral Blood for Allogeneic Transplant: Are We Ignoring the Data? Despite peripheral blood making up 80% of all of hematopoietic cell transplants, there are similar rates of overall survival, disease-free survival, and transplant-related mortality when comparing marrow and peripheral blood as graft sources. Chronic graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) and cytokine release syndrome (CRS) are more significant in those who received peripheral blood, yet the standard of care hasn’t changed. Here, two doctors reflect on the debate. Read full article Geriatrics Treatment Approaches Differ by Age Group in Extremity Soft Tissue Sarcoma Reference Source: JAMA Network OpenDesign: Retrospective study of 8,953 patients from the National Cancer Database; compared the use of definitive treatment between 2004 and 2014 of 1,280 young adults (YAs, aged 18-39 years); 3,937 patients aged 40-64 years; and 3,756 patients age 65+.Results: Amputation – 8.1% (YAs), 5.5% (40-64), 5.3% (65+). Chemotherapy – 39.4% (YAs), 29.5% (40-64), 9.3% (65+). Radiation – 59.3% (YAs), 69.1% (40-64), 63.4% (65+). Unique to young adults, clinical stage II disease vs. stage I disease and positive surgical margins were not associated with the use of radiation. Read full article