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Drs Raymond Thertulien, Joseph Mikhael on Racial Disparities in Multiple Myeloma Care Access
In the wake of the 2023 American Society of Hematology Annual Meeting and Exposition, Raymond Thertulien, MD, PhD, of Novant Health, and Joseph Mikhael, MD, MEd, FRCPC, FACP, chief medical officer of the International Myeloma Foundation, discussed health equity research highlights from the meeting and drivers of racial disparities in multiple myeloma outcomes.
The 2023 American Society of Hematology (ASH) Annual Meeting and Exposition saw more than 7000 abstracts, with a focus placed on real-world data and practice-changing updates. A major theme of this year's meeting was a timely one: What can clinicians and researchers do to close persistent disparities in care and foster health equity?
An area of great need is multiple myeloma, with outcomes still far worse among Black patients in the United States compared with White patients despite potentially favorable cytogenetic disease characteristics and a plethora of novel treatments that have improved multiple myeloma outcomes overall.
In today's episode, Raymond Thertulien, MD, PhD, director of multiple myeloma and plasma cell disorders at Novant Health, is joined by Joseph Mikhael, MD, MEd, FRCPC, FACP, chief medical officer of the International Myeloma Foundation, to discuss ASH 2023 data and the drivers of racial disparities in multiple myeloma outcomes. They spoke on a range of topics, including unacceptable gaps in access to the latest treatments, underuse of diagnostics such as cytogenetic testing, and society-level barriers to equitable care for Black patients with multiple myeloma.
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