Sex Differences in Multiple Myeloma Biology but not Clinical Outcomes: Results from 3894 Patients in the Myeloma XI Trial

Our data suggest that the genetic lesions involved in the initiation and progression of MM may be different between the sexes. Although females were more likely to have the poor prognosis lesions t(14;16) and del(17p), and were more likely to be assessed as having HiR or UHiR disease, this was not associated with reduced PFS or OS. In female patients the trial treatment may have been able to overcome some of the adverse effects of high-risk cytogenetic lesions. MicroAbstract Multiple myeloma (MM) is more common in males compared to females but the reasons behind this are not well understood and the impact of sex on patient outcomes is unclear. This study demonstrates fundamental differences in genetic lesions underlying the biology of MM between males and females. However, we found that progression-free survival and overall survival were the same in both sexes.