Introducing Earlier Supportive Care Can Help Improve Symptoms and Side Effects for People with Multiple Myeloma

One of the main misconceptions of palliative care is that it is only for patients at the end of life. However, palliative care can be given at any stage. Its main purpose is to reduce symptom burden and improve quality of life. 

Integrating specialized palliative care early into your standard treatment plan is a highly practical and effective way to lower daily symptom distress and improve your overall well-being. Palliative care is dedicated to symptom management and medical support, yet people with multiple myeloma are often referred to these services very late in their care, or not at all. 

A recent study presented at the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) annual meeting shows that having a supportive care team shortly after diagnosis or relapse is realistic for many people and reduces common physical symptoms like drowsiness, constipation, and poor sleep quality.

Using palliative care early to treat common symptoms 

The researchers at the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre in Toronto wanted to understand how early supportive care affects individuals with multiple myeloma. They recruited 40 adult outpatient clinic patients who had either newly diagnosed or relapsed multiple myeloma. They all experienced at least one mild-to-moderate baseline symptom. 

The participants were divided into two distinct groups to compare different approaches to care:

• 19 participants received regular, high-quality medical care from their standard multiple myeloma oncology team.
• 21 participants received standard multiple myeloma care, including monthly visits to a specialized, interdisciplinary palliative care clinic, for 3 months. These visits were conducted either in person or virtually.

The primary goal of this pilot study was to determine if patients would actively participate in and complete this type of early support program. They also tracked changes in their quality of life, physical symptoms, and mood over a three-month period.

What the data showed: Targeted relief

Over 80% of people attended their specialized clinic appointments and many completed all monthly health assessments. After three months, the data revealed encouraging trends:

• People who received early palliative care visits showed significant improvements in their total symptom distress scores compared with those receiving usual care alone.
• Sleep quality showed the greatest improvement  in the intervention group.
• Patients in the early supportive care group reported notable reductions in daily drowsiness and constipation.

While the study was a small pilot trial, the general quality of life scores trended higher for patients who had access to the extra layer of supportive care.

Palliative care is a resource that can help any patient at any stage

The main takeaway from this research is that palliative care should be a proactive resource that works alongside active myeloma treatments to make daily life more comfortable. This study shows that specialized symptom management can reduce side effects that standard oncological therapies might not fully resolve on their own.

Source: Early outpatient palliative care for patients with multiple myeloma: A randomized pilot study.