Autologous haematopoietic stem cell transplantation in multiple myeloma patients from ethnic minority groups in an equal access healthcare system

摘要

High-dose melphalan followed by autologous haematopoietic stem cell transplantation (ASCT) became part of the standard of care for most patients with multiple myeloma (MM) under the age of 65 years in the mid-to-late 1990s (Attal et al, 1996; Barlogie et al, 1997). While two smaller single-institution studies from the US reported better progression-free survival (PFS) but comparable overall survival (OS) in black compared with white MM patients following ASCT (Saraf et al, 2006; Verma et al, 2008), a recent large study by the Center for International Blood and Marrow Transplant Research (CI-BMTR) did not observe any significant differences in PFS, OS, relapse rate, or non-relapse mortality (Hari et al, 2010). No systematic study has compared the outcome of Asians with blacks or whites.