A combination regimen of Velcade (bortezomib), Doxil (pegylated liposomal doxorubicin), and dexamethasone (Decadron), known as the VDD regimen, followed by Revlimid (lenalidomide) after autologous stem cell transplantation (ASCT) is an effective therapy for untreated multiple myeloma patients, according to a study recently published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology.

Velcade is a highly active therapeutic agent in multiple myeloma patients. It suppresses tumor growth by inhibiting the enzymes that break down critical proteins in cancerous cells. Although Velcade is approved as a single agent, previous studies…

Phil Brabbs, a software product manager and former kicker for the University of Michigan football team, was diagnosed with smoldering multiple myeloma the day after his 28th birthday. “At 28, looking at my son who was two, you think, ‘Will this kid ever remember me?’ It was really frightening,” he said.

“To get a cancer diagnosis when it seems like you’re doing everything right – you don’t smoke, you drink modestly, you exercise – it was quite shocking. But I don’t think it took more than a week or two…

In a recent phase 2 clinical trial published in the journal Leukemia and Lymphoma, ten out of 23 participants with recurring multiple myeloma or other plasma cell cancers reached partial or complete remission on a steroid-free treatment regimen of Velcade (bortezomib), Doxil (doxorubicin liposomal), and thalidomide (Thalomid). The scientists at the State University of New York who performed the trial were looking for a treatment for people who cannot tolerate steroids.

Steroid-based drugs such as dexamethasone (Decadron) are common and effective multiple myeloma treatments but can…