Long-term disease control in a refractory multiple myeloma patient treated with bortezomib mono-therapy: a case report and review of literature.

Multiple myeloma (MM) accounts for 1.5% of all cancers and approximately 13% of all hematologic malignancies. Therapy for MM has substantially improved after the application of immunomodulatory drugs and proteasome inhibitors. The first proteasome inhibitor, bortezomib, can be considered a major milestone in treatment of MM, greatly improving the response rates and overall survival in front-line and relapsed/refractory settings. However, the prognosis of patients with progressive disease remains poor. In this article, we report a case of refractory MM patient who gained a long time disease control by bortezomib mono-therapy and do a critical review of the literature. We aim to share our experience of efficiency and safety of the long term mono-therapy of bortezomib in a refractory MM.