Lisa La on the Next Steps for a Study of Diabetes in Patients with Multiple Myeloma

A study presented at the 2020 ASH Annual Meeting & Exposition aimed to evaluate differences in baseline characteristics, treatment patterns, and survival outcomes in diabetic versus nondiabetic patients enrolled in the CONNECT Multiple Myeloma Registry.

Ultimately, this study highlighted an unmet need of providing better supportive care for diabetes management in patients with multiple myeloma in order to further improve survival outcomes.

In an interview with CancerNetwork®, Lisa La, director of clinical research in the Center for Cancer Care at White Plains Hospital, discussed what are the next steps in store for the study and what areas of research she intends to explore moving forward.

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[We] are in the process of looking at subgroup analyses of patients [receiving transplant]. Is there a difference in the utilization of it between the 2 groups, diabetics versus nondiabetics? Is transplant used equally in the 2 groups, or is there a big difference? As we know, transplant [leads to] better overall survival in patients with myeloma at first-line treatment, and so on and so forth. If diabetic patients aren’t given that opportunity because of some sort of comorbidities, they’re obviously going to be at a disadvantage and have shorter overall survival.

We know that just in general [in the United States] general population, non-Hispanics and African Americans have a higher prevalence of diabetes. How does that look for African American patients with [myeloma and] diabetes? Is it comparable to the US population? Is there a difference in their outcomes just within the group. [For] African Americans with diabetes, is there a difference [from] Hispanics. There are a lot of interesting things…specifically for race, [to determine] if there’s a difference in transplant.