View article

Anemia is common in cancer patients and is especially frequent in myeloma patients because of the high prevalence of renal insufficiency. Although erythropoietin (Epo) can reduce the need for blood transfusions, its use has been tempered by adverse effects on venous thromboembolism, tumor progression, and cancer survival in recent clinical trials. 1 Although some myeloma patients were included in these trials, no prospective study has evaluated the effect of Epo on survival in myeloma. Epo use was associated with significantly reduced myeloma survival in one retrospective study, 2 whereas other studies showed that Epo caused myeloma regression in mice, 3 that Epo did not impair time to progression or overall survival in patients treated with melphalan and prednisone with or without bortezomib, 4 or that Epo improved survival. 5 Whether tumor epithelial and/or endothelial cells express functional Epo …