Combination drug raises hopes for multiple myeloma survival

Image credit: _louisreed via Unsplash

Results from a phase 3 clinical trial, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, demonstrate that daratumumab significantly reduces the risk of progression to active multiple myeloma and improves overall survival compared to active monitoring. Myeloma is a type of blood cancer known for its resistance to treatment. This breakthrough finding highlights the drug's potential as a key treatment option, offering new hope for patients by delaying disease progression and enhancing survival rates in this challenging cancer.

Source

Dimopoulos, M. A., Voorhees, P. M., Schjesvold, F., Cohen, Y. C., Hungria, V., Sandhu, I., Lindsay, J., Baker, R. I., Suzuki, K., Kosugi, H., Levin, M. D., Beksac, M., Stockerl-Goldstein, K., Oriol, A., Mikala, G., Garate, G., Theunissen, K., Spicka, I., Mylin, A. K., Bringhen, S., … AQUILA Investigators (2025). Daratumumab or Active Monitoring for High-Risk Smoldering Multiple Myeloma. The New England journal of medicine, 392(18), 1777–1788. https://doi.org/10.1056/NEJMoa2409029

Additional Reading

https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2026/01/15/cancer-drug-multiple-myeloma-immunotherapy/

https://cancerblog.mayoclinic.org/2025/01/15/research-shows-new-treatment-could-delay-cancer-progression-in-patients-with-high-risk-smoldering-multiple-myeloma/

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2024/12/241210163409.htm