GDUHEM summarized by Rahul Banerjee

GDUHEM (The Great Debates and Updates in Hematologic Malignancies) event took place in Los Angeles on July 27-28. This two-day program brought together leading healthcare professionals to discuss the latest advancements in blood cancer treatment. Attendees engaged in stimulating debates and discussions on current and controversial topics within the field of hematology-oncology. The agenda promoted idea exchange, fostered collaborative relationships, and enhanced the collective understanding of hematologic malignancies.

Rahul Banerjee, Assistant Professor at UW Medicine, shared a few highlights from the conference.

At GDUHEM, Joseph Mikhael moderating a great discussion about how everything we think we know about multiple myeloma small molecule drug dosing is wrong.

Glad to see the field evolving so quickly!

But as Amrita Krishnan pointed out, easier to talk about politics than it is to talk about smoldering myeloma management algorithms. Sounds like a topic to delve into for GDUHEM next year!

GDUHEM in a memorable multiple myeloma small molecule quote from Joseph Mikhael:

This is the debate of debates, not just because ASCT in older adults versus the younger – but because of the speakers, Amrita Krishnan vs Ajai Chari…

• Southern California versus Northern California.
• Auntie versus Uncle. DMC cc Nina Shah.

At GDUHEM Amrita Krishnan discussing Hira Mian’ s work on dynamic frailty as she defends ASCT as option for patients greater than age 65 even if not studied in multiple myeloma small molecule trials.

Age is just a number, especially on this side of the Atlantic Ocean! Next up: Ajai Chari taking the opposite side.

And Ajai Chari with a great GDUHEM multiple myeloma small molecule rebuttal.

Novel CD38 regimens have excellent efficacy data from prospective trials in older adults…

… but ASCT doesn’t have this level of data greater than age 65. Especially if you extrapolate MEL200 to MEL140, which we haven’t really proven!

Down with dexamethasone is here!

Thanks Joseph Mikhael for mentioning our research with cataract risk increasing as a function of lifetime multiple myeloma small molecule dexamethasone dose in grams (!)

Here we go! Rafael Fonseca at GDUHEM here to debate one of his favorite topics, namely why sCR is dead and MRD is here to stay in multiple myeloma small molecule.

Next up – rebuttal by Murali Janakiram to give a more nuanced take…

Here comes Murali Janakiram with an excellent rebuttal at GDUHEM multiple myeloma small molecule… debating Rafael Fonseca is tough!

Almost everyone agrees that MRD negativity is great, but an even higher proportion of everyone (p<0.05) agrees that MAIA works great even if MRD-neg rates are low!