Open AccessCharacteristics and outcomes of patients with multiple myeloma at the Uganda Cancer Institute
Author(s) -
Clement Dove Okello,
Yusuf Mulumba,
Abrahams Omoding,
Henry Ddungu,
Kristen Welch,
Cheryl L. Thompson,
Andrew J. Cowan,
Matthew M. Cooney,
Jackson Orem
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
african health sciences
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.391
H-Index - 44
eISSN - 1729-0503
pISSN - 1680-6905
DOI - 10.4314/ahs.v21i1.11
Subject(s) - medicine , multiple myeloma , stage (stratigraphy) , incidence (geometry) , population , retrospective cohort study , bone pain , performance status , cancer , surgery , gastroenterology , paleontology , physics , environmental health , optics , biology
Purpose Data on multiple myeloma (MM) in sub-Sahara Africa is scarce. In Uganda, there is a progressively increasing incidence of MM over the years. Methods We performed a retrospective study on 217 patients with MM at the UCI using purposive sampling method. The objectives of the study were to determine the clinical characteristics, treatment outcomes, 5 year overall survival and predictors of survival of patients with MM at the UCI from 01 January 2008 to 31 December 2012. Results There were 119 (54.8%) males; the mean(SD) age of the study population at presentation was 59(12.8) years; 183(84.3%) patients presented with bone pain, and 135 (61.9%) had skeletal pathology; 186(85.3%) were HIV negative, and 152(70%) had Durie-Salmon stage III. The median overall survival was 2.5 years, (95% CI, 0.393–0.595); factors significantly associated with worse survival were Durie-Salmon stage III disease, HR=5.9, 95% CI (1.61 – 21.74; P=0.007) and LDH >225 U/L HR=3.3, 95% CI (0.57 – 5.92; P=0.029). Conclusion Most patients with multiple myeloma at the UCI were diagnosed at a relatively young age, presented with late stage disease and bone pain, and had a shorter survival time. Factors associated with worse survival were Durie-Salmon stage III and LDH >225 U/L.