Leyla O. Shune, MD

Panelists discuss how patients educate themselves about multiple myeloma through hospital pamphlets and magazines, online research, and positive attitude books about cancer while emphasizing the critical importance of peer support and mentorship programs where patients can meet with others who have successfully undergone treatments like stem cell transplants, creating comforting group meetings that help alleviate fear and provide hope by seeing healthy survivors share their stories and demonstrate that recovery is possible.

Panelists discuss how multidisciplinary care coordination for chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy involves registered nurses serving as support persons and liaisons between academic centers and community oncologists, with streamlined communication through direct cell phone access, telehealth consultations to assess candidacy, and coordinated logistics for pretreatment testing, including PET scans, bone marrow biopsies, brain MRIs, and lumbar punctures, while emphasizing that CAR T approval has expanded from fourth-line treatment in 2022 to second-line therapy in 2024, allowing for faster patient access through insurance approval and outpatient T-cell collection processes.

Panelists discuss how a patient with multiple myeloma initially experienced severe fatigue, hair loss, swelling from kidney dysfunction, and overwhelming pain before being misdiagnosed with lupus, ultimately requiring emergency care where blood work and bone marrow biopsy confirmed both multiple myeloma and amyloidosis, leading to successful treatment with chemotherapy followed by stem cell transplant that achieved 5.5 years of remission monitored through regular blood draws tracking  light chain levels.

Panelists discuss how multiple myeloma is a rare blood cancer affecting plasma cells that have gone rogue, causing symptoms like fatigue, kidney dysfunction, and bone pain, with approximately 36,000 new cases diagnosed annually in the US, primarily affecting older patients around 60 to 65 years of age. Although multiple myeloma is highly treatable with great therapy options available, the disease often relapses and requires aggressive early treatment approaches, including emerging immunotherapies that may help cure a larger fraction of patients in the future.

Panelists discuss the growing importance of early integration and collaboration between community oncologists and specialized centers in the evolving chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy landscape for multiple myeloma, emphasizing timely referrals, coordinated care, and strategic sequencing with other immunotherapies to optimize patient outcomes.

Panelists discuss the essential role of supportive care following chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy in multiple myeloma, emphasizing infection prevention through prophylaxis, immunoglobulin replacement, and vaccination strategies, along with the importance of coordinated long-term management between CAR T centers and community oncologists to ensure sustained survivorship care.

Panelists discuss the need for consolidation and maintenance strategies following chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy in patients with high-risk multiple myeloma, highlighting emerging real-world and clinical evidence supporting the use of agents like lenalidomide and bispecific antibodies to extend disease control and improve outcomes in those with historically shorter remissions.

Panelists discuss real-world evidence showing that chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy is safe and effective in traditionally excluded populations with multiple myeloma, including those with comorbidities or central nervous system (CNS) involvement, emphasizing the role of multidisciplinary care, proactive toxicity management, and growing confidence in extending access to high-risk patients.

Panelists discuss emerging strategies to manage delayed neurotoxicity from chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy in multiple myeloma, highlighting the predictive value of postinfusion lymphocyte expansion, the potential of early dexamethasone intervention, and the need for continued research and collaboration to refine toxicity prevention and ensure safer, broader use of CAR T in earlier treatment lines.

Panelists discuss the growing support for incorporating chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy earlier in the multiple myeloma treatment pathway, emphasizing the importance of timely referral and personalized decision-making to maximize patient outcomes before disease progression or comorbidities limit eligibility.

Panelists discuss the critical role of sequencing B-cell maturation antigen (BCMA)-targeted therapies in multiple myeloma, emphasizing that administering chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy before bispecific antibodies leads to better outcomes, while real-world evidence and emerging guidelines increasingly inform strategic decisions based on treatment timing, disease urgency, and patient-specific factors.

Panelists discuss the emerging real-world use of talquetamab as a bridging therapy before chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell treatment in patients with advanced multiple myeloma, highlighting its ability to rapidly reduce tumor burden and improve CAR T outcomes despite unique toxicities and emphasizing how clinician-driven innovation is shaping practice ahead of clinical trial data.

Panelists discuss the real-world comparison of ciltacabtagene autoleucel (cilta-cel) and idecabtagene vicleucel (ide-cel) chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapies for multiple myeloma, highlighting cilta-cel’s superior efficacy but higher toxicity and emphasizing the importance of tailoring treatment decisions to individual patient factors such as disease stage, health status, and personal preferences.

Panelists discuss the transformative impact of chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy on treating relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma (R/R MM) in real-world settings, emphasizing improved patient outcomes, the expanding role of real-world evidence, and the nuanced decision-making required in selecting among newly approved, highly effective immunotherapies.

The expert panel overviews factors to consider with bispecific antibodies and offers closing insights on unmet needs in the multiple myeloma treatment space.

Nausheen Ahmed, MD, gives an overview of BCMA bispecific T-cell engagers used in the treatment of multiple myeloma.

Experts on multiple myeloma discuss the mechanism of action and adverse events for teclistamab and compare CAR T-cell therapy with bispecific T-cell engagers (BiTEs).

The expert panel discusses CAR T-cell therapy options and treatment considerations for patients with multiple myeloma.

Al-Ola Abdallah, MD, presents the case of a patient with multiple myeloma treated with CAR T-cell therapy and teclistamab.

Nausheen Ahmed, MD, and Al-Ola Abdallah, MD, discuss the use of CAR T-cell therapy in patients with transplant-ineligible multiple myeloma.

The expert panel gives an overview of factors that influence treatment decisions in patients with transplant-ineligible multiple myeloma.

Leyla O. Shune, MD, reviews the MAIA trial, which looked at DRd vs Rd in patients with transplant-ineligible multiple myeloma.

The expert panel presents the case of a patient with multiple myeloma and discusses evaluating transplant eligibility in patients with MM.

The standard of care for high-risk multiple myeloma remains unsettled, according to an expert panel from Kansas City.

Experts on multiple myeloma offer clinical insights on treatment options and considerations for patients with standard- and high-risk multiple myeloma.

Nausheen Ahmed, MD, discusses the measurement of treatment response following induction therapy in patients with multiple myeloma.

The expert panel provides clinical insights on the key features of high-risk multiple myeloma and a look toward the clinical trial landscape.

Clinical experts examine the role of transplant in multiple myeloma and discuss key clinical trials and the impact of adding daratumumab to triplet therapy.

Experts on multiple myeloma discuss recent updates from the GRIFFIN trial on patients with transplant-eligible multiple myeloma.

A panel of clinical experts presents the case of a patient with high-risk multiple myeloma (MM) who underwent transplant.