A meta-analysis conducted by researchers at the University of Pennsylvania has shown that treatment with carfilzomib (Kyprolis®) is associated with a higher incidence of cardiovascular events in myeloma patients.

The study found that 18.1% of myeloma patients receiving carfilzomib experienced cardiovascular events, including hypertension, cardiac arrest, cardiac failure and arrhythmias, compared to only 3.8% of patients who received bortezomib (Velcade®). Furthermore, for patients receiving carfilzomib, 8.2% of these cardiovascular events were categorised as being severe (grade 3 or above), compared to only 2.3% of events in patients receiving bortezomib. The results also show that higher doses of carfilzomib are associated with higher rates of cardiovascular events.

Carfilzomib is currently approved for use in combination with dexamethasone for relapsed myeloma patients in the UK. These results present an important consideration for clinicians when identifying myeloma patients who are eligible for treatment with carfilzomib.

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