复发或对既往治疗难治的多发性骨髓瘤患者治疗偏好的通俗语言摘要

What is this summary about? This summary describes results from a study of preferences for treatment features among patients with a type of blood cancer called multiple myeloma . Treatment features are the characteristics of a treatment, such as how effective it is, how it is administered, and potential side effects. Why was the study done and how was it conducted? The aim of this research was to learn more about the most important features of treatment to patients with multiple myeloma. This information can help healthcare professionals, patients, and caregivers choose between different therapies. Patients with multiple myeloma that had either recurred ( relapsed ) or did not respond ( refractory ) to previous therapy completed an online survey. Using the survey results, researchers quantified patient preferences for different treatment features.

Researchers made predictions about how patients may choose between different treatments based on their different features. What were the results and what do they mean? On average, patients rated the most important feature to be increasing the amount of time they could expect to live after starting the treatment. Other highly important features included reducing the risk of serious infection, avoiding long hospital stays at the start of treatment, and the increasing likelihood of their cancer responding to treatment (i.

e. , the treatment reduced the signs of cancer in the body, either partially or completely, to undetectable levels). Although patients were wary of serious infections, they were willing to trade a higher risk of serious infection to increase how long they could expect to live. When considering hypothetical treatment options, patients in general preferred a treatment that was immediately available versus one that would not be immediately available.