Impact of 1q gains on treatment outcomes of patients with newly diagnosed multiple myeloma in a real‐world Swedish population receiving modern treatment

Abstract

AbstractBackgroundAmplification of 1q (amp(1q); ≥4 1q copies) has repeatedly been reported to predict a worse outcome in multiple myeloma (MM), whereas the impact of gain of 1q (gain(1q); three 1q copies) is less clear.MethodsWe investigated survival of MM in relation to amp(1q) and gain(1q) by retrospectively analysing 346 consecutively newly diagnosed MM (NDMM) patients. Of these, 62 (18%) had amp(1q), 97 (28%) gain(1q) and 187 (54%) a normal number of 1q copies (no1q).ResultsThe patients with amp(1q) had a shorter median progression‐free survival than those with gain(1q) or no(1q) (13.1 months, 95% confidence interval [CI] 8.2–18.1 months vs. 36.1 months, 95% CI 23.1–49.1 months vs. 25.4 months, 95% CI 19.8–31.1 months, p = .005). The 3‐year overall survival (OS) was 56% for amp(1q), 76% for gain(1q) and 80% for no1q (p = .003). In the multivariate analysis, the presence of amp(1q) was independently associated with a shorter OS (hazard ratio 1.99, 95% CI 1.03–3.82, p = .039), whereas gain(1q) had no negative effect on survival.ConclusionOur results thus suggest that amp(1q) should be considered a high‐risk abnormality in NDMM and that new treatment strategies should be explored to mitigate its negative effect on survival.