REVLIMID®, a potent immunomodulatory derivative (IMiD) of thalidomide, induces apoptosis [programmed cell death] in resistant MM cell lines and patient cells and, more importantly, decreases binding of MM cells to bone marrow stromal cells. The compromise of this relationship between the myeloma cell and its microenvironment results in inhibiting production in the BM milieu of cytokines (IL-6, VEGF, TNF-alpha) mediating growth and survival of MM cells and blocking angiogenesis." (from "Myeloma therapy, from the bench to the clinic," Blood; November, 2002 (vol. 100, no.9, p. 3061)