New Strategies in Multiple Myeloma: Immunotherapy as a Novel Approach to Treat Patients with Multiple Myeloma
Cet article passe en revue les perspectives offertes par le développement d'immunothérapies pour le traitement des patients atteints d'un myélome multiple
Multiple Myeloma (MM) is a B-cell malignancy characterized by proliferation of monoclonal plasma cells in the bone marrow. Although new therapeutic options introduced in recent years have resulted in improved survival outcomes, MM still remains incurable for a large number of patients and new treatment options are urgently needed. Over the last 5 years there has been a renewed interest in the clinical potential of immunotherapy for the treatment of MM. Clinical progression of myeloma is known to be associated with progressive immune dysregulation and loss of immune surveillance that contributes to disease progression in association with progressive genetic complexity, rendering signaling based treatments less effective. A variety of strategies to reverse the MM induced immunosuppression has been developed either in the form of immunomodulatory drugs, checkpoint inhibitors, monoclonal antibodies, engineered T cells and vaccines. They have shown encouraging results in patients with relapsed refractory MM and hold great promise in further improving patient outcomes in MM. This review will summarize the major approaches in MM immunotherapies and discuss the mechanisms of action and clinical activity of these strategies.