Although multiple myeloma (MM) has been known to physicians since the 1840s, effective treatments were not developed until much later. Speaking from the 1st European Myeloma Network (EMN) Meeting 2018, held in Turin, Italy, Robert Kyle, MD, of the Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, gives a brief outline of the history of 150 years of MM therapy development, starting from the first recorded treatment of a boy in the early 1840s and concluding with the present day. Prof. Kyle highlights key stages in the progression of treatment, beginning with the application of leeches and making several notable mentions of drugs, such as quinine and urethane, before making a special reference to thalidomide, which revolutionized the treatment of MM.
150 years of multiple myeloma therapy
