LAUSR

BACKGROUND The demographic characteristics, performance status, frequency of comorbidities and survival rate of patients with multiple myeloma (MM) show variability geographically and different risk scoring systems have been used to assess this population. Here, we present data from a Turkish cohort, focusing on identifying similarities and differences, relative to other reports in the literature. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS A total of 310 patients diagnosed with MM were enrolled. Their demographic characteristics were investigated retrospectively. For performance assessment; the Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG)-International Myeloma Working Group (IMWG) Myeloma Frailty Score (including Charlson Comorbidity Index-CCI), Revised Myeloma Comorbidity Index (R-MCI) and Haematopoietic Cell Transplantation-Specific Comorbidity Index (HCT-SCI) were used. The International Staging System (ISS) and Revised ISS were used to determine the stage. Finally, progression-free and overall survival periods, as well as the causes of deaths, were determined. RESULTS The mean age of all study participants was 65 ± 10 years. The mean progression-free and overall survival periods were 24.14± 26.11 and 65.3 ± 4.4 months, respectively. The median R-MCI, CCI and HCT-CI scores were five, four and three points, respectively. Myeloma-related complications were the leading cause of death, with a frequency of 51%. When consulting the literature, similar results regarding mean age, MM type and all performance scoring indexes were apparent. CONCLUSION Among the scoring systems utilised, R-MCI was more convenient to apply due to its ease of use and practicality. Our study supports the heterogeneous course of myeloma and highlights geographic differences including comorbidities, causes of death and overall survival.