Introduction: Multiple myeloma (MM) is a plasm-cell neoplasm, that is characterized by a monoclonal protein in the serum or urine. Bortezomib is an efficacy drug for the second line treatment of MM.
Patients and method: We conducted a retrospective study of 21 consecutive cases with refractory MM treated with bortezomib and dexamethasone as second line therapy, with the objective of analyzing the overall response rate (primary end point), the progression-free survival (PFS), the overall survival (OS), the duration of response (DR) and toxicity profile (second end points).
Results: In our study we found an overall response rate of 70%. With a median follow-up of 15 months, we had a median PFS of 12 months (95% CI: 2-21 months), with a median OS of 17 months (95% CI: 2-32 months), and a median DR of 9 months (95% CI: 5-13 months). Fourty-seven percent of patients had neuropathy, the 33% thrombocytopenia, 13.33% anemia and 26.66% diarrhea.
Conclusions: The combination of bortezomib and dexamethasone is an effective and safe treatment in second line of refractory MM, with a manageable toxicity.