The importance of treating multiple myeloma patients during the COVID-19 pandemic

Graham Jackson, MBBS, FRCP, FRCPath, MD, Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Trust, Newcastle, UK, discusses how multiple myeloma patients are affected by the COVID-19 infection. A study in the UK, that Prof. Jackson was involved in, indicated that active disease was associated with severe COVID-19 infection. Another international study found similar results. It has not been shown that treatment with immunomodulators, proteasome inhibitors, anti-CD38 antibodies or transplantation is related to increased COVID-19 infection. Therefore, the treatment of myeloma patients should not be delayed to give patients the best chance of survival during the pandemic. This interview took place during the Controversies in Multiple Myeloma (COMy) 2020 Virtual World Congress.