Treatment Preference for Relapsed/Refractory Multiple Myeloma

In a study presented at the ASH Annual Meeting 2018 in San Diego, researchers asked, “Are patients willing to trade off efficacy for tolerability?” in reference to the treatment of relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma (RRMM). 

According to the published study, “Several agents have recently been approved for relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma (RRMM), providing patients and providers with more treatment options…This study aims to quantify these preferences using a discrete-choice experiment (DCE) survey coupled with a best-worst scaling (BWS) exercise to elicit treatment priorities and unmet needs.”

Using a series of focus groups, a digital survey was distributed to patients recruited from the Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation CoMMpass Study. The design of the survey “utilized both a DCE and a BWS exercise that included attributes and levels that overlapped between the two types of patient preference questions (DCE and BWS) to provide multiple sources of information on treatment preferences.”

The final DCE experiment included 6 factors and the final BWS exercise included 18 total factors. Among some of the factors included were progression-free survival (PFS; 6-24 months), risk of heart failure, gastrointestinal problems, modes and frequency of administration, and mild to serious adverse events. 

The sample comprised 94 patient responders with an average age of 65 years split into two subgroups. 

“Patients with RRMM place importance on PFS and nerve toxicity when considering treatment features and modes of administration. Results from the preference study indicate that there are subgroups of patients with systematically different treatment preferences,” researchers continued. “Understanding how different patients value treatment attributes may help decision makers improve the quality of patient-centered care.”

—Edan Stanley