This article was originally published on Cancer Therapy Advisor
As the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic evolves into subsequent waves in many parts of the world, there are many outstanding questions about the outcomes of infection for patients with multiple myeloma, specifically around the severity of outcomes, prognostic factors, and the effect of different treatments.
A recent multicenter analysis of 167 hospitalized multiple myeloma patients with COVID-19 in Spain shines new light on some of those questions.1 Through comparison with an age- and sex-matched noncancer control group of COVID-19 patients, researchers found that mortality for those with multiple myeloma was 34% — 50% higher than for noncancer patients. This can be explained both by patient characteristics and factors related to the biology of multiple myeloma itself, the authors wrote.
In addition to older age, male sex, and comorbidities such as hypertension (which other multiple myeloma studies have previously identified), the study flagged presentation with active or progressive disease and comorbid renal disease as key prognostic factors. The study suggested that prior treatment had little effect on COVID-19 outcomes.
The patients enrolled in the study were treated at one of 73 hospitals throughout Spain during March and April 2020. They were compared with a same-sized noncancer group of COVID-19 patients with the same median age (71 years) and sex ratio (57%), and a similar number had at least 1 comorbidity — a key strength of the study, said Malin Hultcrantz, MD, PhD, hematologic oncologist at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York City, who wasn’t involved in the research.