New and updated data on novel and conventional therapies for patients with newly diagnosed or relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma were presented at the 2008 meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO), May 30 through June 3, in Chicago, Illinois.

Presentations included reports of data from clinical trials of novel agents in combination therapy, preliminary results of newer targeted agents, discussions of the role of stem cell transplantation (SCT), including the effects of novel agents on stem cell collection, and continued research into how best to determine risk factors and to personalize therapy in an age of increasing use of gene expression profiling (GEP) and other molecular techniques.

This year’s educational session covered controversies surrounding the initial treatment of multiple myeloma, timing of high-dose therapy in myeloma, and risk-adapted therapy of myeloma. There were also poster presentations on these and other topics of interest to physicians treating patients with multiple myeloma.