Multiple myeloma in the geriatric patient.

Consecutive patients with multiple myeloma were studied. The clinical characteristics and survival of 17 patients aged 75 years or more were compared to 42 patients younger than 75 years of age. Of the patients older than 75 years, 14/17 (82%) died in less than 12 months compared to only 11/42 (26%) of those under 75 years old (P less than 0.001). Multivariate analysis showed that both age and hemoglobin were significant predictors of survival (P less than 0.012 and P less than 0.002, respectively) explaining 34.6% of the variance (r = 0.588, P less than 0.000), whereas the extent of bone lesions, the presence of more than 50% plasma cells in the bone marrow, the amount of serum monoclonal protein, functional class, and the Salmon and Durie staging system did not significantly add to the analysis. We conclude that the factors that best predict prognosis are hemoglobin levels and age at presentation. Different approaches including more appropriate chemotherapeutic regimes and comprehensive geriatric assessment with improved supportive treatment need to be developed for the geriatric patient with multiple myeloma.