Stem Cell Transplant Still Improves Myeloma Patient Survival

"There's still a debate within the oncology community whether stem cell transplant should always be used, should always be avoided or how we should choose patients," said Rosenberg. “If the newer agents were making the transplants less relevant, you would expect to see a decrease in efficacy across various areas of treatment, and we didn’t see that at all,” said Rosenberg. “Stem cell transplants are at least as effective as they were in the early 2000s.” 

The authors were surprised to find that transplants have been used so sparingly. They hope this new data will spur further research to identify barriers and encourage oncologists to reconsider the approach.

"This is ongoing evidence the procedure is important and useful in an era when newer treatments are available. Patients still need to be considered for stem cell transplant," said Rosenberg. "It's not for everyone, but that decision needs to be made with a keen eye towards the benefits and risks."