Oct. 13, 2011 | Two multiple myeloma experts shared the stage at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) to kick off the new Controversies in Oncology debate series.

Discussing the topic “Is Myeloma Curable” were Bart Barlogie, M.D., Ph.D., director of the UAMS Myeloma Institute for Research and Therapy and professor of medicine in the UAMS College of Medicine, and S. Vincent Rajkumar, M.D., professor of medicine at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn.

The series is a new addition to the weekly Grand Rounds lectures at the UAMS Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute. Held quarterly, the debates feature a UAMS physician or scientist and his or her counterpart from another institution sharing differing views on cancer-related topics.

An overflow crowd gathered to hear Barlogie and Rajkumar discuss their views on treatment for the multiple myeloma, a cancer of the blood’s plasma cells.

Barlogie’s aggressive outpatient approach to treatment draws patients from around the world and has resulted in more than 9,000 outpatient stem cell transplants performed at UAMS, more than any other institution in the world.

Barlogie’s research has identified that myeloma exists as both aggressive (high risk) and less aggressive (low risk), and UAMS myeloma researchers are now looking at variations of patient outcomes within high-risk groups.

His Total Therapy treatment for both low- and high-risk patients includes a multi-drug regimen and two stem cell transplants followed by a maintenance program for three years.

“We are doing highly sophisticated research in order to change the course of medicine. The risk of undertreating low-risk patients could be a serious error if cure is the goal,” Barlogie said.

Rajkumar’s approach to treatment differs, particularly in regard to patients with low-risk disease. “Our low-risk patients make a decision whether to have a transplant now, or to wait until later when the disease has progressed. We don’t do a second transplant unless the first one is unsuccessful,” he said.

Videos:

    Is Myeloma Curable - Part 1 of 5

    Is Myeloma Curable - Part 2 of 5

    Is Myeloma Curable - Part 3 of 5

    Is Myeloma Curable - Part 4 of 5

    Is Myeloma Curable - Part 5 of 5