April 23rd 2021
The CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices voted to uphold the original language of the emergency use authorization for Johnson & Johnson's COVID-19 vaccination, and is possible the 1-dose vaccine could resume Saturday.
Reorganization of Sickle Cell Care Leads to Dramatic Drop in Hospitalizations
August 7th 2020Yale New Haven Hospital’s reorganization of its sickle cell disease program led patients to report feeling better off and needing fewer hospitalizations. However, the change left some with the disease still feeling unsatisfied.
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Bristol Myers Squibb, bluebird bio Submit Second BLA for MM CAR T-Cell Treatment
July 30th 2020Bristol Myers Squibb and bluebird bio submitted a second Biologics License Application (BLA) to the FDA for idecabtagene vicleucel (ide-cel), the companies’ investigational B-cell maturation antigen–directed chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell immunotherapy, indicated for adults with relapsed and refractory multiple myeloma (MM).
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Cannabis May Be Safe, Potentially Effective Option for Pain for Sickle Cell Disease
July 23rd 2020According to the study, vaporized cannabis, when compared with placebo, could be a safe and potentially effective way to address pain linked with sickle cell disease. While the decreases in pain were not statistically significant, the drug did significantly decrease pain interference in mood over a 5-day inpatient stay.
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During ASCO, Janssen presented results from the CHRYSALIS study on amivantimab, a bispecific antibody being developed to treat non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). The pharma giant, along with its parent company, Johnson & Johnson (J&J), had previously received a breakthrough therapy designation in December for teclistamab, another bispecific antibody indicated for potential treatment of multiple myeloma.
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Lingering Questions Limit Impact of MRD in the Clinic Despite Its Growing Prominence
July 18th 2020While minimal residual disease has become an important way to track how patients respond to therapies for multiple myeloma, the treatment implications of the metric are not yet clear, according to a review article.
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MM Progression, Treatment Do Not Appear to Impact COVID-19 Mortality, Study Finds
July 4th 2020A new study that looked at a cohort of 58 patients with multiple myeloma (MM) who contracted COVID-19 found the disease itself does not appear to be linked with higher mortality when these individuals are hospitalized.
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CAR T-Cell Therapies Show Promise for Multiple Myeloma, but Hurdles Remain
July 2nd 2020There are promising signs that chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapies might lead to meaningful advances in the therapy of multiple myeloma. However, investigators will first need to clear a number of key hurdles.
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MRD Should Be More Widely Used in Clinical Care of MM, Report Argues
June 26th 2020Minimal residual disease (MRD) status has been shown to be a better indicator of the prognosis of a patient with multiple myeloma (MM) than “complete remission.” Yet, it’s still not widely used in the clinic. A new article examines the problem.
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New Method Enables Smartphone-Based Diagnosis of Sickle Cell Disease
June 14th 2020Patients with sickle cell disease who do not receive treatment can die from the disease, but diagnostic resources are scarce in some parts of the world where the disease is most prevalent. A new smartphone-based method could change that.
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Induction Therapy Optimal for Transplant-Eligible Patients With Multiple Myeloma
June 11th 2020A new large randomized trial indicates induction therapy including lenalidomide is optimal in patients with multiple myeloma who are transplant-eligible. Maintenance with lenalidomide was preferable to observation alone following transplant.
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