Dr. Jagannath on Immunotherapy in Multiple Myeloma

Sundar Jagannath, MD, director of the multiple myeloma program, professor of medicine (hematology and medical oncology), Tisch Cancer Institute at Mount Sinai School of Medicine, discusses immunotherapy in multiple myeloma and how it fits into the future treatment paradigm.

When patients are diagnosed with multiple myeloma, Jagannath says it is clear they have several mutations. The current available treatments suppresses the dominant clone, he adds, but then a second mutation emerges and is resistant to the current therapy. A patient may receive a new treatment, but they are already developing new mutations which may also be resistant to the therapy.

However, the immune mechanism, Jagannath explains, is independent of the molecular mutations. Here, the antibody binds to the cancer cell’s surface, eliminating cancer cells completely.

Immunotherapy serves as a "quantum leap” for oncologists to take when working towards a cure for patients, he adds.