Samir Parekh, MBBS, associate professor of medicine, hematology and medical oncology at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai Hospital, discusses using genomics to treat patients with multiple myeloma.

Physicians are using genomics to identify new drivers to understand myeloma better, find treatment for patients, and find the impact of genomics of the tumor on the tumor microenvironment, explains Parekh. For prognosis, physicians are looking at RNA expression patterns to build a new map of myeloma and find parts of the map associated with poor-risk myeloma, says Parekh.

For immunology, neoantigens can be used to treat patients and track their disease, as these tumor mutations elicit responses that can be the most direct measure of the immunotherapies that are being used in myeloma, including immunomodulatory agents and monoclonal antibodies, concludes Parekh.

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Samir Parekh, MBBS, discusses using genomics to treat patients with multiple myeloma.

Dr. Parekh on Using Genomics in Multiple Myeloma Treatment

Samir Parekh, MBBS, associate professor of medicine, Hematology/Oncology, Mount Sinai Hospital, discusses how an increase in the understanding of myeloma has led to the development of novel therapies.

Researchers have developed more effective ways to understand the biology and microenvironment of the disease, which has led to novel treatment strategies for patients, Parekh says. Specifically, oncologists at Mount Sinai Hospital are using cutting-edge technology to develop biomarkers, which will ultimately lead to new disease targets. As more drugs enter the crowded myeloma treatment landscape, Parekh says that it is crucial for physicians to understand the bone marrow environment as well as the tumor microenvironment.

Small molecule inhibitors such as selinexor and venetoclax (Venclexta) have significantly impacted the field, and ongoing research is looking at new agents in this class. The median survival for patients with myeloma has dramatically improved in recent years, Parekh says, and there is newfound hope in where the field is headed. In the future, he sees myeloma transforming from a potentially fatal cancer to more of a manageable, chronic disease.

Samir Parekh, MBBS, associate professor of medicine, Hematology/Oncology, Mount Sinai Hospital, discusses the evolving treatment landscape in myeloma.

Samir Parekh, MBBS

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Dr. Parekh on Using Genomics in Multiple Myeloma Treatment

Dr. Parekh on Evolving Treatment Landscape in Myeloma