Grampians Health joins Myeloma project

GRAMPIANS Health Ballarat has enrolled in a myeloma and related diseases registry, and myeloma one thousand project.

Myeloma is a blood cancer where abnormal plasma cells grow uncontrollably in the bone marrow and form tumours in the bone or soft tissue.

Grampians Health’s haematology lead, Dr Swe Htet, has enrolled the organisation in the project which aims to gather a repository of samples to help future patients.

“We want to get real-life data on myeloma treatment in Australia,” said Dr Htet.

“We’re hoping to contribute to the myeloma database in Australia and compare regional centre performance with metro centres.”

It is hoped that the data from newly diagnosed myeloma patients will help predict the onset of disease and the best treatment strategies for future patients.

The treatment options for myeloma have significantly changed over the last decade and many second-generation and targeted therapies are under development.

The average survival for patients diagnosed with myeloma is four to five years with current therapy.