Plasma cell myeloma — management recommendation of the Institute of Hematology and Transfusion Medicine

Abstract

During recent years there have been significant developments in the field of diagnostics and therapy of plasma cell myeloma (PCM). Important progress regarding PCM prognosis has been a consequence of approval of new drugs, implementation of new diagnostic methods as well as optimisation of existing strategies based on results of ongoing multicentre clinical trials. However, the improvement in PCM prognosis is associated with rapidly growing costs of treatment. As a response public health service authorities in many countries including Poland have been forced to develop regulations determin­ing access to novel drugs against PCM. The PCM management recommendations of the Institute of Hematology and Transfusion Medicine (IHT) constitute a homogenous and practical diagnostic and therapeutic strategy that was developed as a compromise between newest knowledge and current administrative restrictions determining use of novel drugs in Poland. The main reason of current actualisation of the recommendations of IHT are creation of a new therapeutic programme of the Na­tional Health Found regulating treatment with bortezomib and lenalidomide in patients with PCM. These modifications have significantly changed the access to these drugs in Poland.