Daratumumab, lenalidomide, and dexamethasone (DRd) yielded faster and sustained clinically meaningful improvements in patient-reported outcomes (PROs) compared with lenalidomide and dexamethasone (Rd) for transplant-ineligible patients with newly diagnosed multiple myeloma (MM; J Clin Oncol. 2021;39[3]:227-237. doi:10.1200/JCO.20.01370).
In order to compare the effects of these treatments, Aurore Perrot, Hematology Department, Cancer University Institute Oncopole (Toulouse, FR), and colleagues assessed PROs on the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire Core 30-item and the EuroQol 5-dimensional descriptive system at baseline and every 3 months during treatment.
A total of 737 patients were included in this comparative study and randomly assigned to DRd (n = 368) or Rd (n = 369). Both groups demonstrated high compliance with PRO assessements at baseline (>90%) through month 12 (>78%).
Quality of Life scores improved from baseline in both groups. DRd yielded better global health status benefit regardless of patient characteristics , resulting in significantly reduced pain scores as soon as cycle 3. Improvement was consistent through cycle 12.
DRd performed better than Rd in this study, resulting in faster and sustained clinically meaningful improvements in transplant-ineligible patients with newly diagnosed MM, regardless of age, baseline ECOG status, or depth of treatment response.—Marta Rybczynski
