Glucocorticoid receptor expression in multiple myeloma patients is a predictor of survival

Abstract

Multiple myeloma (MM) is a blood neoplasia characterized by abnormal proliferation of plasma cells. Various treatments such as stem cell transplant (SCT), proteasome inhibitors, immune-modulating drugs, monoclonal antibodies and selective inhibitors of nuclear export have been routinely used to treat MM. However, relapse and treatment resistance are common problems in MM patients. Treatments are enhanced by Dexamethasone (Dex), a synthetic steroid that activates the glucocorticoid receptor (GR) which leads to apoptosis. To evaluate the potential impact of GR expression on overall survival, MM patient data from the CoMMpass study of 650 patients were analyzed. Multivariate modeling results show that increased GR expression at diagnosis is associated with a decreased risk of dying relative to those with lower levels of expression.

Keywords:

• Multiple myeloma
• dexamethasone
• glucocorticoid receptor
• survival
• CoMMpass

Acknowledgements

We are thankful to Dr. Alessandro Lagana of Genetics and Genomic Sciences at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai New York for bioinformatics support and scientific advices.

Disclosure statement

Research reported in this publication included work supported by the National Cancer Institute of the National Institutes of Health under grant number P30CA033572. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health.