Phase III results of VRd (bortezomib + lenalidomide + dexamethasone) in multiple myeloma published in The Lancet- J&J Janssen Cilag

Researchers announced the publication in The Lancet of the results of a randomized, phase III trial which found that the three-drug combination VRd (bortezomib + lenalidomide + dexamethasone), from J&J Janssen Cilag, delays recurrence and lengthens life for multiple myeloma patients, indicating a possible new standard of care. One regimen used in the study was lenalidomide with dexamethasone, a standard first-line treatment for myeloma patients. The other drug regimen also included bortezomib, a second-line drug typically given to myeloma patients whose cancer progresses after initial therapy. Researchers found that the addition of bortezomib earlier made a difference for myeloma patients, giving them about another year of remission and another year of life compared to the standard two-drug regimen.

The VRd regimen will become even more cost effective as the drugs in this combination become generic over time. Patients in the trial receiving bortezomib, along with lenalidomide and dexamethasone, in their first six months of treatment had a median remission time of 43 months compared to a median remission of 30 months for patients who received lenalidomide and dexamethasone alone. Researchers also found that patients who received bortezomib lived a median of 75 months, or about six years, after their initial treatment. Patients who received the standard two-drug treatment lived a median of 64 months, or about five years, after initial treatment.

See: "Bortezomib with lenalidomide and dexamethasone versus lenalidomide and dexamethasone alone in patients with newly diagnosed myeloma without intent for immediate autologous stem-cell transplant (SWOG S0777): a randomised, open-label, phase 3 trial" Brian G M Durie et al. The Lancet Published: 22 December 2016 DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(16)31594-X