Survival analysis of multiple myeloma patients after autologous stem cell transplantation

Abstract

Background: Hematopoietic stem cell transplantation has been applied to treat the hematologic malignancies since the 1980s. However, allogenic transplantation has inherent complications such as graft-versus-host disease and graft failure. Autologous transplantation has become more and more popular because of its lower transplant-related mortality. This study was performed to analyze the possible prognostic factors for myeloma patients post stem cell transplantation. Methods: Patients' information was collected by history review and follow-up through the phone call. Kaplan-Meier was used to exhibit overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS). Univariate and multivariate analyses were performed using Cox proportional hazards model. A P<0.05 is considered statistically significant. Results: Thirty patients with multiple myeloma were included in this study, 7 of them died because of myeloma relapse and myeloma-associated complications. The average survival time was 29.8 months and the median follow-up was 25.1 months. The 1-year OS and PFS were 93.3% and 90.0%, respectively. Both the 3-year OS and PFS were 76.7%. In a variety of factors, improved renal function showed a good effect on the outcome of transplantation. Conclusions: To prevent cancer relapse after autologous transplantation, it is of great significance to achieve a complete remission prior to the transplantation.