Can circulating tumor cell assessment by flow replace bone marrow aspirates to monitor SMM?

During the 62nd American Society of Hematology (ASH) Annual Meeting and Exposition, the Multiple Myeloma Hub spoke to Bruno Paiva, University of Navarra, Pamplona, ES. We asked, Can circulating tumor cell assessment by flow replace bone marrow aspirates to monitor smoldering multiple myeloma (SMM)?

Paiva talks about the iMMunocell study. The aims of this study are as follows:

1. To determine the level of concordance between the tumor/immune landscape in bone marrow versus peripheral blood of patients with SMM.

2. To evaluate immune profiles together with circulating tumor cell counts and genetic alterations every 6 months in peripheral blood, as minimally-invasive methods for identification of patients with SMM at risk of developing active disease.

Results from this study show a significant correlation between circulating tumor cell counts and stable versus progressive disease.