Recently Diagnosed or Relapsed? Stop Looking For a Miracle Cure, and Use Evidence-Based Therapies To Enhance Your Treatment and Prolong Your Remission
Multiple Myeloma an incurable disease, but I have spent the last 25 years in remission using a blend of conventional oncology and evidence-based nutrition, supplementation, and lifestyle therapies from peer-reviewed studies that your oncologist probably hasn't told you about.
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Multi-Refractory Myeloma- Integrative?
What does the multi-refractory Myeloma patient do as they run out of therapy options? Induction therapy, ASCT, maintenance, triplet, another triplet and now you’re facing relatively new therapies such as CAR-T cell therapy.
Don’t misunderstand me. BCMA therapies such as CAR-T cell hold a great deal of promise. At this point however (November 2024), these therapies:
- are relatively untested
- hold serious side effects
- are expensive
Consider changing your goal from trying to cure your MM with aggressive therapies to simply trying to control your MM as well as manage your immune system. Maybe give more weight to quality of life?
Consider combining FDA approved regimens with integrative or complementary therapies to manage your myeloma. Consider an approach that is thinking outside the box.
My own MM journey was strictly FDA approved therapies. I reached complete remission AFTER my oncologist told me that “we can do nothing more for you.” Ouch.
What is integrative oncology?
What therapies combine FDA approved regimens with non-conventional regimens to fight multiple myeloma?
1. Immunotherapy and Natural Compounds
- Curcumin: Research suggests that curcumin, the active compound in turmeric, has anti-cancer properties, including anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects. Some studies indicate that it may enhance the efficacy of traditional drugs like bortezomib, a proteasome inhibitor widely used in multiple myeloma. Clinical trials are ongoing to determine safe doses and effectiveness.
- Green Tea Extract (EGCG): Epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG), found in green tea, has shown potential in reducing cancer cell growth and improving immune function. It’s thought to work synergistically with certain FDA-approved drugs, although it should be taken with caution due to potential interactions.
2. Dietary Supplements with Proteasome Inhibitors
- Resveratrol: Found in red grapes, resveratrol may induce apoptosis (programmed cell death) in myeloma cells. Some studies suggest it could be effective in combination with proteasome inhibitors like carfilzomib or ixazomib.
- Vitamin D: Vitamin D is important for immune regulation, and adequate levels may support conventional treatment regimens. Some patients with myeloma have low vitamin D levels, and supplementation may improve outcomes when combined with chemotherapy.
3. Mind-Body Approaches
- Acupuncture and Acupressure: These techniques are commonly used to manage treatment side effects like nausea, fatigue, and neuropathy. Studies show that they can complement conventional therapies by reducing symptoms and improving quality of life.
- Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR): Practices like meditation and guided imagery may reduce stress and anxiety in patients with myeloma, helping them manage the psychological impact of the disease and its treatments. MBSR may also help with pain management and overall well-being, making it an effective adjunct to FDA-approved treatments.
4. Integrative Immunotherapy Approaches
- Hyperthermia: Localized or whole-body hyperthermia can weaken cancer cells and enhance the effects of chemotherapy and immunotherapy by increasing blood flow to the tumor site. In multiple myeloma, hyperthermia has shown potential for making cells more vulnerable to drugs.
- Oncolytic Viruses: These engineered viruses selectively infect and kill cancer cells and are sometimes paired with other therapies to boost immune response. Talimogene laherparepvec (T-VEC), an FDA-approved oncolytic virus for melanoma, is being explored in other cancers, including myeloma, and may have applications in integrative approaches.
5. Microbiome and Fecal Microbiota Transplants (FMT)
- Altering the gut microbiome through dietary changes, probiotics, or fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) is being studied to enhance immune function and reduce inflammation. FMT, specifically, is an investigational approach in multiple myeloma and may help modulate immune responses, though it’s not yet FDA-approved for cancer treatment.
Conventional oncology is focused almost exclusively on FDA approved standard-of-care therapies. These therapies can be effective for MM patients. However, the multi-refractory myeloma patient may be heavily pre-treated and may be running out of therapy options.
Email me at David.PeopleBeatingCancer@gmail.com to learn more about integrative therapy for the multi-refractory myeloma patient.
Thank you,
David Emerson
- MM Survivor
- MM Cancer Coach
- Director PeopleBeatingCancer
Multi-Refractory MM: After Immunotherapy, What?
“When patients with multiple myeloma (MM) relapse following chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy, bispecific antibodies (BsABs), or both, likely salvage options remain that are being overlooked, including a second course of immunotherapy…
One approach they endorsed was allowing patients to recover from T-cell exhaustion…
Recycling MM Therapies Deserves Consideration
In other words, CAR T cells and BsABs are not the last stop in the available lines of therapy for MM. The next best therapy is dependent on numerous considerations, including prior therapy exposure, but Mikhael pointed out that many patients in advanced stages have not been exposed to therapies known to be active or are not being considered for therapies to which they were exposed but are not necessarily resistant…
Monge made similar comments. He agreed with Mikhael that clinicians faced with a patient with multitherapy-refractory MM might forget about
- the XPO1 inhibitor selinexor,
- the alkylating agent bendamustine,
- or even the B-cell lymphoma 2 inhibitor venetoclax…
Any of these agents alone or in combination could be considered to “give the patient some time to improve” T-cell function, Monge said…”