Severe Obesity and Outcomes After Transplant for Myeloma
Posted: Thursday, April 18, 2019
Patients with obesity and severe obesity do not seem to have an increased risk of death after transplantation for multiple myeloma, according to a study by Zhubin J. Gahvari, MD, of the University of Wisconsin, Madison, and colleagues. Their retrospective study results were presented at the 2019 National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) Annual Conference in Orlando (Abstract HSR19-088).
“Obesity and severe obesity were not associated with an increased risk of mortality for multiple myeloma patients receiving autologous peripheral blood stem cell transplantation,” the investigators commented. “Although severe obesity is a health hazard, this should not be used to exclude patients from transplant.”
The scientists conducted a review of patients undergoing autologous peripheral blood stem cell transplantation for multiple myeloma. The patients, who received treatment at the University of Wisconsin between 2010 to 2017, were assessed after their first transplant until death. To determine whether age, body mass index, time between diagnosis and transplant, and Revised International Staging System score were linked with a higher risk of death, they used Cox proportional hazard regression models and associated log-rank tests.
Of the total 314 patients included, 178 patients were categorized as not having obesity, 72 patients had obesity, and 64 had severe obesity. There was no association between obesity and a higher risk of death after transplant, including factors for age, sex, lag time, and Revised International Staging System score. In addition, mortality outcomes did not seem to be impacted by posttransplant hospital length of stay.
Disclosure: The study authors reported no conflicts of interest.
