Application of thalidomide combined with interferon in treatment of recurrent or refractory multiple myeloma patients with poor physical and economic conditions

Abstract

Objective To preliminarily observe the clinical efficacy and safety of the thalidomide combined with interferon in treatment of recurrent or refractory patients with multiple myeloma (MM) in poor physical and economic conditions. Methods The clinical data of 9 MM patients who received the regimen of thalidomide combined with interferon in Henan Cancer Hospital from October 2011 to October 2015 were retrospectively analyzed. All 9 patients had poor physical and economic conditions, including 7 (77.8%) cases of recurrent or refractory and 2 cases newly diagnosed. The clinical efficacy and safety were evaluated. Results The efficacy of all patients were evaluable. There were 2 cases complete remission (CR), 2 cases partial remission (PR), 3 cases stable diseases (SD), and 2 cases progressive diseases (PD). The clinical benefit (CR+PR) rate was 44.4%. The main adverse reactions included the drug fever caused by interferon, peri-neurotoxicity and visceral neurotoxicity caused by thalidomide. No severe adverse reactions such as deep vein thrombosis occurred. Conclusions Thalidomide combined with interferon has a favorable effect on recurrent or refractory MM patients in poor physical or economic conditions, meanwhile, the adverse reactions of this regimen are tolerable for most patients. Key words: Multiple myeloma; Thalidomide; Interferon; Recurrence; Refractory