The question of whether chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cell therapies should be used in earlier lines (after 1–2 prior lines of therapy) in patients with relapsed and/or refractory multiple myeloma remains unanswered. Herein, I argue that the use of surrogate end points that lack a robust correlation with overall survival, as well as suboptimal control arms and use of post-progression therapies, limit the ability to make definitive conclusions on the basis of the available data.
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V.P. has acted as a consultant of OptumRX and UnitedHealthcare, receives research funding from Arnold Ventures through a grant made to UCSF, receives royalties for books and writing from Free Press, Johns Hopkins Press and MedPage and hosts the podcasts, Plenary Session, Sensible Medicine and VPZD, writes the newsletters Sensible Medicine, the Drug Development Letter and VP’s Observations and Thoughts, and runs the YouTube channel Vinay Prasad MD MPH, which collectively earn revenue on the platforms Patreon, Substack and YouTube.
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Prasad, V. CAR T cells in multiple myeloma: lessons learned. Nat Rev Clin Oncol (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41571-024-00898-8
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41571-024-00898-8
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