Biweekly bortezomib maintenance therapy for 1 year may not improve clinical outcomes among transplant-ineligible patients with multiple myeloma (MM) who plateau after bortezomib induction therapy, according to a study published in the International Journal of Hematology.
For this non-comparative phase 2 study, 38 patients with previously untreated MM who were ineligible for autologous stem cell transplantation (ASCT) were treated with a bortezomib-containing induction regimen until plateau. Patients then initiated maintenance treatment with bortezomib 1.3 mg/m2 every 2 weeks for 1 year within 60 days of completing induction therapy.
Of 36 evaluable patients, the overall response rate (ORR) was 61%. There was, however, no improvement in the depth of response during the maintenance phase, and 50% of patients experienced disease progression. After completing the 1-year maintenance therapy, 1 patient had a stringent complete response, 2 patients had a very good partial response, 3 patients had a partial response, and 3 patients had stable disease.