What Myeloma Patients Need to Know About Bispecific Antibodies from Patient Empowerment Network on Vimeo.
What should myeloma patients know about bispecific antibody therapy? Expert Dr. Jeffrey Matous explains the function of bispecific antibodies, reviews the risks and benefits of this treatment option, and provides questions to ask your doctor to help guide your care.
Dr. Jeffrey Matous is a myeloma specialist at the Colorado Blood Cancer Institute and the assistant chair in myeloma research for Sarah Cannon Research Institute. Learn more about Dr. Matous.
See More from Evolve Myeloma
Related Resources:
Transcript:
Katherine:
Let’s switch gears now to another therapy we’ve been hearing about: bispecific antibodies. One has been recently approved for myeloma, teclistamab (Tecvayli), so let’s start with what are bispecific antibodies and who might they be right for?
Dr. Jeffrey Matous:
And strap on your seatbelt, because there’s a whole bunch of them coming, I think, for approval. So, the T-cell redirecting antibodies, it’s a different strategy for trying to get your T cells, the patient’s T cells, to attack the myeloma cells. And in CAR T-cell therapy, it’s a single infusion. That’s the treatment. And the bispecific antibodies that I often call T-cell redirecting antibodies, because they redirect the T cells to the myeloma cell, these are given over a continuous period and it might as long as you tolerate it, as long as it’s working. It might be for a year. And they are given either under the skin as a subcutaneous injection, or in the vein.
And there are many, many different of these T-cell redirecting antibodies, the bispecific antibodies. How they work, I just do this with my patients. I hold up my hand and I say the bispecific antibodies have two hooks on them, and one hook recognizes the T cell and latches onto the T cell, and the other hook latches onto the myeloma cell. And then, what it does, it brings the T cell in proximity to the myeloma cell. Then, the T cell says “Oh, aha. I’m supposed to kill this myeloma cell,” and usually does it. Now, the part that connects the T cell and these bispecific antibodies is always the same. It’s CD3. However, the part that sticks on the myeloma cell, there are different targets, and you referred to teclistamab, which was approved by the FDA, and that attaches to something on the outside of a myeloma cell called BCMA, BCMA.
But we know that other bispecific antibodies that can attach to different markers or antigens on the outside of the myeloma cell and affect the same change, and so, I think these are going to be coming fast and furious.
Katherine:
Who’s this class of treatment right for?
Dr. Jeffrey Matous:
I think – well, again, the FDA approval right now is for people who have seen pretty much everything. You know, you’ve had a lot of treatments. You’ve seen all the different classes of the myeloma drugs, but in our clinical research trials right now, we’re testing these as an initial therapy, in second-line therapy, after stem cell transplants. They’re being tested pretty much in every scenario right now in clinical trials, so right now, it’s when you’ve exhausted the normal treatments and you’re considering CAR T-cell therapy, or you’re considering getting treated with a drug called selinexor (Xpovio), or looking at another clinical trial. That’s when it’s the time to ask about the bispecific antibodies.
Katherine:
What are the risks and benefits of this therapy?
Dr. Jeffrey Matous:
The risks are pretty similar to the risks from CAR T-cell therapy, so Cytokine Release Syndrome. That usually occurs during the first week. Neurologic toxicity is, I think, less frequent with the bispecific antibodies, but infections and low blood counts definitely a concern with these bispecific antibodies, requires a lot of monitoring without any doubt.
Now, the other thing about the bispecific antibodies, there’s, right now, they’ve been in the realm of the larger centers, so myeloma centers is where people have been getting these bispecific antibodies, but there’s absolutely no question in my mind that these bispecific antibodies are going to be available through almost every general hematology, oncology practitioner’s office, but not for a while. The docs that aren’t used to giving these medicines are a little – they’re being quite cautious rolling them out in their practices right now. There are still a lot of questions as these roll out, and so, right now, I think teclistamab is still largely unavailable outside myeloma centers, but that’s going to change, I think, even over 2023 and definitely into 2024.
Katherine:
Okay. That’s really good news. For patients who want to know more about bispecifics, what questions should they be asking their healthcare team?
Dr. Jeffrey Matous:
Again, the same thing is – the same questions. Well, teclistamab is approved by the FDA. What other bispecifics are there? What about combinations? What about clinical trials? And then, that’s what you want to ask for sure. Then, how often do I need to come in the office? With teclistamab, the answer is weekly.
If they say for how long, it’s until it quits working or you have side effects, and then you can’t take it anymore. That’s the way the FDA label is. And so, it’s a big commitment to go on these treatments, but they’re effective. You ask me about the effectiveness of these drugs and, essentially, all the studies with these different bispecifics, including teclistamab, have been studied initially in people who have seen every myeloma treatment. They’ve had an average of about six different myeloma treatments.
They’ve seen all the drugs. They’re not working anymore. They’re in trouble. They’re in a pinch, and roughly, seven out of ten people have dramatic responses to these bispecifics when they’re treated, which we’ve never had anything like this at all in the myeloma world.
Katherine:
Wow. Do the side effects go away at some point?
Dr. Jeffrey Matous:
The side effects are completely manageable. Yeah and you can – by and large, you can adjust the bispecific, either the schedule or different things, to make these completely tolerable for patients.
Katherine:
Okay.
Dr. Jeffrey Matous:
Very few patients on our trials, with these bispecifics, who we have not been able to manage and, pretty much, handle all the – any side effect that occurs.
Construyendo una Relación con su Equipo de Atención Médica para el Cáncer de Próstata
/in PC Care Spanish Videos, PC Care: What You Need to Know, PC Newly Diagnosed, PC Programs, PC Videos ND, Prostate Cancer /by Kara RayburnConstruyendo una Relación con su Equipo de Atención Médica para el Cáncer de Próstata from Patient Empowerment Network on Vimeo.
¿Quiénes son los posibles miembros de su equipo de cáncer de próstata? Este video animado repasa los principales proveedores que pueden participar en su tratamiento y proporciona herramientas para comunicarse con confianza con los miembros del equipo.
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Usted Tiene un Papel en Sus Decisiones de Atención del Cáncer de Próstata
¿Qué Preguntas Debe Considerar Hacerle a Su Equipo de Atención del Cáncer de Próstata?
Colaborar con su médico en su plan de cuidados
Transcript:
Niki:
Hola, yo soy Niki y soy enfermera practicante de cáncer de próstata. Y este es Anthony, que vive con cáncer de próstata. ¡Gracias por acompañarnos!
Anthony:
En este video, nosotros lo guiaremos a través de los miembros de su equipo de atención médica para el cáncer de próstata – y compartiremos consejos para construir relaciones sólidas y comunicarse de manera más efectiva.
Niki:
Cuando se trata de cáncer de próstata, usted necesita un equipo que colabore en todos los aspectos de su atención. Y es vital que usted utilice TODOS los miembros. Después de todo, ellos están ahí para ayudarle.
Entonces, ¿quién ESTÁ en su equipo?
Hay varios proveedores diferentes que pueden estar involucrados con su diagnóstico y atención del cáncer de próstata:
Anthony:
Y más allá de sus médicos, hay todo un equipo de profesionales de apoyo para ayudarlo en el camino. Por ejemplo:
Niki:
Hay varios otros miembros del equipo en los que puede confiar, que incluyen:
Anthony:
Exactamente. Yo luché emocionalmente cuando me diagnosticaron, entonces, me puse en contacto con el trabajador social, quien me conectó con un consejero y grupos de apoyo. Ver a un profesional y unirse a un grupo hizo sentirme menos solo y con más esperanza.
Niki:
Y por último, pero no menos importante, un cuidador o un ser querido es otro miembro central de su equipo.
Anthony:
¡Absolutamente! Ya sea que se trate de un amigo o un miembro de la familia, tener a alguien con usted en las citas o para hablar sobre sus opciones es beneficioso.
Ahora que sabe quién puede estar en su equipo, hablemos de fortalecer la comunicación. Al comunicarse de manera efectiva, usted puede aprender sobre su enfermedad y convertirse en un socio activo en las decisiones de atención. Aquí hay algunos consejos para ayudarlo:
Niki:
Gracias por acompañarnos, ¡esperamos que se sienta más empoderado! Y recuerde descargar la guía que acompaña a este video para repasar lo que comentamos.
Entendiendo Tu Diagnóstico del Cáncer de Próstata
/in PC Care Spanish Videos, PC Care: What You Need to Know, PC Newly Diagnosed, PC Programs, PC Videos ND, Prostate Cancer /by Kara RayburnEntendiendo Tu Diagnóstico del Cáncer de Próstata from Patient Empowerment Network on Vimeo.
¿Qué necesita saber sobre su diagnóstico de cáncer de próstata? Este video animado repasa el proceso de diagnóstico y proporciona los pasos necesarios para trabajar con su equipo sanitario y comprender su enfermedad en particular.
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Construyendo una Relación con su Equipo de Atención Médica para el Cáncer de Próstata
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¿Qué Preguntas Debe Considerar Hacerle a Su Equipo de Atención del Cáncer de Próstata?
Transcript:
Niki:
¡Hola! Yo soy Niki y soy enfermera practicante de cáncer de próstata . Y este es Anthony, que vive con cáncer de próstata .
Anthony:
En este video, nosotros lo ayudaremos a comprender el cáncer de próstata y cómo se diagnostica y se estadifica.
Niki:
Entonces, ¿qué es exactamente el cáncer de próstata ? Comienza cuando las células de la glándula prostática crecen fuera de control, formando un tumor canceroso.
Es el segundo cáncer más común en los hombres Americanos. Y aunque puede ser grave, hay opciones disponibles para la atención del cáncer de próstata .
Anthony:
Y hay ciertos factores de riesgo que pueden hacerlo a usted más propenso a desarrollar cáncer de próstata , tales como:
Niki:
Así es, Anthony. Ahora que tenemos una mejor comprensión de lo que es el cáncer de próstata , pasemos a cómo se diagnostica.
Su equipo de atención médica utilizará una variedad de pruebas para comprender mejor su enfermedad.
Por ejemplo, se puede usar una prueba de PSA y una biopsia para confirmar un diagnóstico. Y las pruebas de diagnóstico por imágenes – como una Resonancia Magnética o una Tomografía Computarizada – se utilizan para determinar si el cáncer se ha dispersado.
Estos resultados de la prueba también ayudan a su médico a estadificar su enfermedad. La estadificación ayuda a indicar la ubicación del cáncer, si se ha dispersado más allá de la próstata y su impacto en otras áreas del cuerpo. También puede ayudar a guiar el plan de tratamiento de un paciente.
Al estadificar el cáncer de próstata , los médicos pueden considerar:
Anthony:
Gracias por explicarnos eso, Niki. Entonces, ¿cuáles son las etapas del cáncer de próstata ?
Niki:
¡Muy buena pregunta!
Anthony:
Y a mi me diagnosticaron cáncer de próstata en etapa IV, lo que significa que se ha dispersado más allá de la próstata y se considera cáncer de próstata avanzado.
Niki:
Así es. Y debido a que la estadificación del cáncer de próstata es complicada, es importante revisar los resultados de las pruebas con su médico para comprender su etapa y grado. Si no entiende su diagnóstico, asegúrese de hacer preguntas y solicitar recursos para ayudarlo.
Anthony:
Aquí hay algunos pasos adicionales que usted puede tomar para sentirse más seguro de comprender su diagnóstico:
Niki:
Y averigüe qué tanta experiencia tiene su médico en el tratamiento de su tipo de cáncer de próstata y considere buscar una segunda opinión con un especialista en cáncer de próstata.
Anthony:
Finalmente, no dude en solicitar recursos de apoyo para ayudarlo a sobrellevar emocionalmente su diagnóstico.
Niki:
Visite powerfulpatients.org/pc para ver todos los videos de esta serie y descarga la guía que acompaña a este video para revisar lo que hemos discutido.
Anthony:
¡Gracias por acompañarnos!
Cáncer de próstata avanzado: Cómo Ser Un Paciente Empoderado
/in PC Care Spanish Videos, PC Care: What You Need to Know, PC Newly Diagnosed, PC Programs, PC Videos ND, Prostate Cancer /by Kara RayburnCáncer de próstata avanzado: Cómo Ser Un Paciente Empoderado from Patient Empowerment Network on Vimeo.
¿Qué pasos puede dar para convertirse en un paciente de cáncer de próstata con capacidad de decisión? En este video animado, aprenderá herramientas de autoeducación y autodefensa que le ayudarán a participar en las decisiones sobre su tratamiento.
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Construyendo una Relación con su Equipo de Atención Médica para el Cáncer de Próstata
Usted Tiene un Papel en Sus Decisiones de Atención del Cáncer de Próstata
Transcript:
Niki:
¡Hola! Soy Niki, y soy enfermera especializada en cáncer de próstata. Y este es Anthony, que vive con un cáncer de próstata avanzado.
Juntos, vamos a guiarte a través de una serie de vídeos para ayudarte a aprender más sobre el cáncer de próstata y darte los pasos necesarios para desempeñar un papel activo en tu cuidado y en tus decisiones de tratamiento.
En primer lugar, quiero presentarles la organización responsable de este vídeo: la Red de Empoderamiento del Paciente, o “PEN”.
La misión de PEN es sencilla. Consiste en proporcionar a los pacientes con cáncer y a sus cuidadores los conocimientos y las herramientas necesarias para aumentar su confianza, para que tengan el control de su atención sanitaria y para ayudarles a conseguir su objetivo de recibir la mejor atención posible.
[La experiencia de los pacientes representada en este vídeo es ficticia.]
Anthony:
Entonces, ¿qué significa ser un paciente empoderado? La Organización Mundial de la Salud lo define como “un proceso mediante el cual las personas adquieren un mayor control sobre las decisiones y acciones que afectan a su salud.”1
Cuando me diagnosticaron el cáncer de próstata por primera vez, me sentí abrumado y no me sentía cómodo compartiendo mis preocupaciones y opiniones. Pero gracias a los conocimientos sobre mi enfermedad, a la colaboración con mi equipo y a que aprendí a defenderme a mí mismo, me sentí más controlado y con más confianza para hablar..
Niki:
Exactamente, Anthony. Uno de los primeros pasos para convertirse en un paciente empoderado es informarse sobre su enfermedad. Puede empezar a aprender sobre su cáncer de próstata:
Recuerde que la información en línea nunca sustituye al consejo médico. Siempre debe consultar a su médico sobre lo que ha aprendido. Esto será más fácil a medida que vayas comprendiendo mejor tu enfermedad y te sientas más cómodo compartiéndola con tu equipo sanitario.
Anthony:
Así es, Niki. Pero, como aprendí de primera mano, hablar claro no siempre es fácil. He aquí algunos consejos que me ayudaron:
Niki:
¡Es un gran consejo, Anthony! Hemos hablado mucho. Así que no te olvides de descargar la guía que acompaña a este vídeo –– puede ayudarte a recordar lo que hemos tratado.
Anthony:
Y visita powerfulpatients.org/PC para ver más vídeos con Niki y conmigo. ¡Gracias por acompañarnos!
Stem Cell Transplants for Myeloma: An Update
/in Evolve Myeloma, Evolve Myeloma Treatment, MM Newly Diagnosed, MM Programs, MM Resources ND, MM Resources TC, MM Treatments and Clinical Trials, Multiple Myeloma /by Kara RayburnStem Cell Transplants for Myeloma: An Update from Patient Empowerment Network on Vimeo.
Expert Dr. Jeffrey Matous discusses the evolving role of stem cell transplant as a “standard of care” treatment and reviews therapies that are under study as alternatives to stem cell transplant.
Dr. Jeffrey Matous is a myeloma specialist at the Colorado Blood Cancer Institute and the assistant chair in myeloma research for Sarah Cannon Research Institute. Learn more about Dr. Matous.
See More from Evolve Myeloma
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Transcript:
Katherine:
PEN community member, Greg, sent in this question. “Can you discuss any future or potential changes to using stem cell transplant for myeloma patients? How would you counsel patients who do not want to pursue a transplant as a treatment option?”
Dr. Jeffrey Matous:
So, for stem cell transplant in myeloma, for years, it’s been the standard of care for suitable patients.
And every couple years, I liken this to that game we used to play called King of the Hill growing up where stem cell transplants, King of the Hill, and everyone tries to knock stem cell transplant off the hill. And so far, it really hasn’t happened. And so, transplants still, I think, an important part of the overall care for suitable patients.
For patients who are eligible and safe enough to undergo transplant. However, not all – now, will this be challenged in the future? And the answer is – I think the next challenger, and this will be a serious challenger, will be CAR T-cell therapy. And so, we have to figure out if CAR T-cell therapy or the bispecific antibodies are safe enough to give at the beginning and as effective as stem cell transplant and what the long-term side effects, how they might differ, as well, so that question is going to be tackled in the myeloma word, but it’s going to be several years until we have an answer there, for sure.
So, for my patients who are otherwise candidates for stem cell transplant, but who don’t want to do it, usually, I’ll say, “You may change your mind in the future. In myeloma, it’s important to keep all your options open and you should at least discuss with the transplant center collecting and freezing away your stem cells for a rainy day to keep that option open to you.” So, even you’re thinking of not doing it, it might be a good idea, it probably is a good idea, to harvest and store your stem cells at a transplant center.
And then, if you’re not going to do transplant up front, they key is to stay on prolonged maintenance therapy.
We know that that’s one of the keys for making survival as long as possible in patients who don’t do a transplant is to continue on ongoing maintenance therapy as long as possible. Don’t curtail your therapy just because you’re not doing a transplant.
Should You Push for a Stronger Myeloma Treatment at Relapse?
/in Evolve Myeloma, Evolve Myeloma Advocacy, MM Newly Diagnosed, MM Programs, MM Resources ND, MM Resources TC, MM Treatments and Clinical Trials, Multiple Myeloma /by Kara RayburnShould You Push for a Stronger Myeloma Treatment at Relapse? from Patient Empowerment Network on Vimeo.
Should myeloma patients consider choosing a more aggressive treatment at relapse? Expert Dr. Jeffrey Matous explains the revised approach to choosing treatment at this stage and shares examples of second-line therapies that may be options for relapsed patients.
Dr. Jeffrey Matous is a myeloma specialist at the Colorado Blood Cancer Institute and the assistant chair in myeloma research for Sarah Cannon Research Institute. Learn more about Dr. Matous.
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What Myeloma Patients Need to Know About Bispecific Antibodies
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Transcript:
Katherine:
Kendall writes, “I’m in the maintenance stage following initial diagnosis and treatment. At first relapse, is it appropriate to push for stronger treatment in hopes of a cure?”
Dr. Jeffrey Matous:
Yeah, so the answer to that has changed. The answer is yes, and so, the – it used to be said in myeloma that your best treatment was your first treatment. Then, if you relapsed, that the treatments didn’t work as well, and the remissions did not last as long. Throw it out, so now, we get multiple chances to get really deep remissions in patients, and we should be every bit as greedy when we’re treating relapsed disease, at least initially, as we are when we treat disease at the very beginning. We know, for example, that there are many second-line therapies. I’ll just throw out some examples – daratumumab (Darzalex), pomalidomide dex, daratumumab, Revlimid dex, daratumumab Velcade dex.
Not to mention, the T-cell therapies that can put patients in remissions that are so deep that we can’t even find myeloma cells using very sophisticated molecular techniques, so be greedy.
What Myeloma Patients Need to Know About Bispecific Antibodies
/in Evolve Myeloma, Evolve Myeloma Treatment, MM Programs, MM Treatments and Clinical Trials, MM Videos TC, Multiple Myeloma /by Kara RayburnWhat Myeloma Patients Need to Know About Bispecific Antibodies from Patient Empowerment Network on Vimeo.
Dr. Jeffrey Matous is a myeloma specialist at the Colorado Blood Cancer Institute and the assistant chair in myeloma research for Sarah Cannon Research Institute. Learn more about Dr. Matous.
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Transcript:
Katherine:
Let’s switch gears now to another therapy we’ve been hearing about: bispecific antibodies. One has been recently approved for myeloma, teclistamab (Tecvayli), so let’s start with what are bispecific antibodies and who might they be right for?
Dr. Jeffrey Matous:
And strap on your seatbelt, because there’s a whole bunch of them coming, I think, for approval. So, the T-cell redirecting antibodies, it’s a different strategy for trying to get your T cells, the patient’s T cells, to attack the myeloma cells. And in CAR T-cell therapy, it’s a single infusion. That’s the treatment. And the bispecific antibodies that I often call T-cell redirecting antibodies, because they redirect the T cells to the myeloma cell, these are given over a continuous period and it might as long as you tolerate it, as long as it’s working. It might be for a year. And they are given either under the skin as a subcutaneous injection, or in the vein.
And there are many, many different of these T-cell redirecting antibodies, the bispecific antibodies. How they work, I just do this with my patients. I hold up my hand and I say the bispecific antibodies have two hooks on them, and one hook recognizes the T cell and latches onto the T cell, and the other hook latches onto the myeloma cell. And then, what it does, it brings the T cell in proximity to the myeloma cell. Then, the T cell says “Oh, aha. I’m supposed to kill this myeloma cell,” and usually does it. Now, the part that connects the T cell and these bispecific antibodies is always the same. It’s CD3. However, the part that sticks on the myeloma cell, there are different targets, and you referred to teclistamab, which was approved by the FDA, and that attaches to something on the outside of a myeloma cell called BCMA, BCMA.
But we know that other bispecific antibodies that can attach to different markers or antigens on the outside of the myeloma cell and affect the same change, and so, I think these are going to be coming fast and furious.
Katherine:
Who’s this class of treatment right for?
Dr. Jeffrey Matous:
I think – well, again, the FDA approval right now is for people who have seen pretty much everything. You know, you’ve had a lot of treatments. You’ve seen all the different classes of the myeloma drugs, but in our clinical research trials right now, we’re testing these as an initial therapy, in second-line therapy, after stem cell transplants. They’re being tested pretty much in every scenario right now in clinical trials, so right now, it’s when you’ve exhausted the normal treatments and you’re considering CAR T-cell therapy, or you’re considering getting treated with a drug called selinexor (Xpovio), or looking at another clinical trial. That’s when it’s the time to ask about the bispecific antibodies.
Katherine:
What are the risks and benefits of this therapy?
Dr. Jeffrey Matous:
The risks are pretty similar to the risks from CAR T-cell therapy, so Cytokine Release Syndrome. That usually occurs during the first week. Neurologic toxicity is, I think, less frequent with the bispecific antibodies, but infections and low blood counts definitely a concern with these bispecific antibodies, requires a lot of monitoring without any doubt.
Now, the other thing about the bispecific antibodies, there’s, right now, they’ve been in the realm of the larger centers, so myeloma centers is where people have been getting these bispecific antibodies, but there’s absolutely no question in my mind that these bispecific antibodies are going to be available through almost every general hematology, oncology practitioner’s office, but not for a while. The docs that aren’t used to giving these medicines are a little – they’re being quite cautious rolling them out in their practices right now. There are still a lot of questions as these roll out, and so, right now, I think teclistamab is still largely unavailable outside myeloma centers, but that’s going to change, I think, even over 2023 and definitely into 2024.
Katherine:
Okay. That’s really good news. For patients who want to know more about bispecifics, what questions should they be asking their healthcare team?
Dr. Jeffrey Matous:
Again, the same thing is – the same questions. Well, teclistamab is approved by the FDA. What other bispecifics are there? What about combinations? What about clinical trials? And then, that’s what you want to ask for sure. Then, how often do I need to come in the office? With teclistamab, the answer is weekly.
If they say for how long, it’s until it quits working or you have side effects, and then you can’t take it anymore. That’s the way the FDA label is. And so, it’s a big commitment to go on these treatments, but they’re effective. You ask me about the effectiveness of these drugs and, essentially, all the studies with these different bispecifics, including teclistamab, have been studied initially in people who have seen every myeloma treatment. They’ve had an average of about six different myeloma treatments.
They’ve seen all the drugs. They’re not working anymore. They’re in trouble. They’re in a pinch, and roughly, seven out of ten people have dramatic responses to these bispecifics when they’re treated, which we’ve never had anything like this at all in the myeloma world.
Katherine:
Wow. Do the side effects go away at some point?
Dr. Jeffrey Matous:
The side effects are completely manageable. Yeah and you can – by and large, you can adjust the bispecific, either the schedule or different things, to make these completely tolerable for patients.
Katherine:
Okay.
Dr. Jeffrey Matous:
Very few patients on our trials, with these bispecifics, who we have not been able to manage and, pretty much, handle all the – any side effect that occurs.
Considering CAR T-Cell Therapy for Myeloma? Key Questions to Ask Your Doctor
/in Evolve Myeloma, Evolve Myeloma Treatment, MM Programs, MM Treatments and Clinical Trials, MM Videos TC, Multiple Myeloma /by Kara RayburnConsidering CAR T-Cell Therapy for Myeloma? Key Questions to Ask Your Doctor from Patient Empowerment Network on Vimeo.
What key questions should myeloma patients ask about CAR T-cell therapy? Expert Dr. Jeffrey Matous shares key advice to help patients make an informed decision about CAR T-cell therapy.
Dr. Jeffrey Matous is a myeloma specialist at the Colorado Blood Cancer Institute and the assistant chair in myeloma research for Sarah Cannon Research Institute. Learn more about Dr. Matous.
See More from Evolve Myeloma
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Myeloma CAR T-Cell Therapy: How Does It Work and What Are the Risks?
Myeloma Combination Therapy | What Patients Should Know
Should You Push for a Stronger Myeloma Treatment at Relapse?
Transcript:
Katherine:
Yeah, so what questions should patients be asking their doctor when considering CAR T-cell therapy?
Dr. Jeffrey Matous:
I think the first thing, of course, is am I a candidate, because the commercially approved CAR-T cells, there are very specific criteria for who’s a candidate, who could receive it. Okay, and then, you want to know, one, if you’re a candidate. Two, what the risks and benefits are.
Three, are there alternatives besides CAR T-cell therapy. Is it too early or too late to do this? Should we think about maybe another clinical trial or one of the T-cell redirecting antibodies, for example? You want to ask those questions for sure. These treatments are tremendously expensive, of course, and so that may come into play, as well. You want to know what the experience of the center is with CAR T-cell therapy, I think, and then, you also want to know are there clinical research studies for which you might be eligible to have CAR-T cells, not just commercially available ones, because we have two that are commercially available right now, and we have scores of CAR T-cell treatments that are still in clinical trial.
Myeloma CAR T-Cell Therapy: How Does It Work and What Are the Risks?
/in Evolve Myeloma, Evolve Myeloma Treatment, MM Programs, MM Treatments and Clinical Trials, MM Videos TC, Multiple Myeloma /by Kara RayburnMyeloma CAR T-Cell Therapy: How Does It Work and What Are the Risks? from Patient Empowerment Network on Vimeo.
What should myeloma patients know about CAR T-cell therapy? Expert Dr. Jeffrey Matous explains the how CAR T-cell therapy works to treat myeloma, risks associated with this therapy, and reviews common side effects that patients may experience.
Dr. Jeffrey Matous is a myeloma specialist at the Colorado Blood Cancer Institute and the assistant chair in myeloma research for Sarah Cannon Research Institute. Learn more about Dr. Matous.
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Transcript:
Katherine:
Let’s dive into new and emerging treatment. CAR T-cell therapy has been approved for myeloma patients and it’s certainly a hot topic right now. Can you tell us about this treatment and who it might be right for?
Dr. Jeffrey Matous:
Absolutely, so these T-cell therapies in myeloma are really exciting, and basically, how they work is T cells are cells that normally, in our body, they’re part of our immune system. When they see something foreign, usually, it’s a foreign infection or some kind. T cells go into kill mode and take out the foreign invader, and they’re supposed to do this with cells that are thinking about turning into cancer, but for various reasons, cancer cells can escape the T cells, and then, kind of brainwash the new system to say, hey. It’s okay if we coexist with you. No big deal. We’ll just hang out together. Okay? And that’s not okay. And so, in CAR T-cell therapy, what we do is we take the patient’s T cells.
We remove them from the blood with a procedure called apheresis, which is a machine that many patients might be familiar with through their stem cell collections.
It’s the same machine. And we collect these T cells. Then, they go to a laboratory where they are genetically modified in the laboratory using very sophisticated techniques to become myeloma killers. And we tell – we educate the T cells to become myeloma killers. We grow them up in sufficient numbers, and then, we return them to the patient. We just, basically, put them back in the patient’s bloodstream in the vein and they go and they are really effective at killing myeloma cells. And that’s CAR T-cell therapy, so it’s an amazing immune therapy. It’s way more complicated than I laid out, of course, but that’s the general thought behind it.
Katherine:
What are the risks of this therapy?
Dr. Jeffrey Matous:
Absolutely, so we have a lot of patients who come and ask about CAR T-cell therapy and think that it’s the same thing as getting daratumumab in the clinic or carfilzomib in the clinic.
Get it and you’re on your way. Far from that, and so, CAR T-cell therapy has a lot of risks. The risks fall into a few different categories. The first risk is called CRS, which doesn’t stand for what you think it stands for. It stands for Cytokine Release Syndrome. This occurs when the T cells recognize the myeloma cell and kill it, and when they do this, a lot of substances get released in the body that can cause a lot of symptoms, like fever, or low blood pressure, or low oxygen, and this requires specialized management to shepherd people through this.
This almost always occurs in about the first week of the treatment after the patients receive the CAR-T cells. In addition, patients who receive CAR-T cells can have what’s called neurologic toxicity that falls into many different categories. It can be something as simple as a headache, or a transient or temporary difficulty, you know, saying words or being confused, or in the most severe situation, even a seizure.
This requires a lot of close monitoring for neuro toxicity. In addition, we know that patients that get CAR T-cell therapy are, for quite a while after they receive the CAR-T cells, an increased risk for infection. It’s very suppressing of the immune system, immunosuppressive. And lastly, a lot of our patients who go through CAR T-cell therapy have low blood counts for a long time and they have to be monitored for this, might need transfusions, or some different therapies. It’s a complicated therapy for sure.
Myeloma Combination Therapy | What Patients Should Know
/in Evolve Myeloma, Evolve Myeloma Treatment, MM Programs, MM Treatments and Clinical Trials, MM Videos TC, Multiple Myeloma /by Kara RayburnMyeloma Combination Therapy | What Patients Should Know from Patient Empowerment Network on Vimeo.
Expert Dr. Jeffrey Matous shares an overview of myeloma treatment classes, why combination therapy can be effective, and the importance of clinical trials in patient care and moving research forward.
Dr. Jeffrey Matous is a myeloma specialist at the Colorado Blood Cancer Institute and the assistant chair in myeloma research for Sarah Cannon Research Institute. Learn more about Dr. Matous.
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Transcript:
Katherine:
There are several treatment classes for myeloma, such as immunomodulatory therapy and proteasome inhibitors, for example, and they’re often used together. So, what is a combination therapy and why is it used so frequently for myeloma?
Dr. Jeffrey Matous:
Absolutely, so with learned over the years in myeloma that combining different types of drugs that work in different ways, we call those classes, so different classes of drugs, combining them together is the optimal treatment for myeloma.
And back in the day, we used to use two drugs. Then, we learned that three drugs are better than two drugs, and now, we have data that four drugs are better than three drugs. And so, we bring in drugs from all kinds of different categories for our patients. And we even know that for the non-transplant-eligible patients, for the older patients, for example, that combining drugs from different classes is really, really important to get the best outcomes. And in general, the three classes that we use – the four classes that we use when we’re treating myeloma patients initially include the immunomodulatory drugs, and examples of those are lenalidomide, also called Revlimid. pomalidomide, also called Pomalyst. Thalidomide’s (Thalomid) an older drug, but we still occasionally use it.
And then, we have the proteasome inhibitors. Examples of those are bortezomib (Velcade), carfilzomib (Kyprolis), and to a much lesser extent, there’s one called ixazomib (Ninlaro). And these days, we know that CD38 antibodies are really important and really getting their foothold into the initial treatment of myeloma.
Examples of CD38 antibodies are daratumumab (Darzalex) or isatuximab. And then, usually, we combine these treatments with steroid medicines to sort of increase the effectiveness of the regimens. That’s how – those are the classes that we use when we’re treating myeloma.
Katherine:
Okay and have you learned about adding one treatment to another to another through clinical trials or is trial and error?
Dr. Jeffrey Matous:
Absolutely. We would not be where we are right now without the conduct of clinical trials. I always tell my patients by the time something’s approved in myeloma, and we had things approved in 2022, the field is already moving past that in clinical trials. It’s unbelievable. So, I’ll give you an example. When daratumumab, one of these antibodies, got approved by the FDA, already when it got approved by the FDA, we knew through clinical trials that were being conducted that combining it with other types of medicines was far more potent.
And we have countless examples of this, so yeah. Absolutely, so every treatment that we use in myeloma, we discovered and developed through a clinical trial. And I always encourage my patients strongly to consider clinical trials, and then, we have to explain, because when patients hear clinical trials, and I could be deviating a little bit here, Katherine.
They often think about experimentation and testing things that are unproven. In myeloma, we occasionally do that, but far and away, the overwhelming majority of our clinical trials are testing agents that we know are effective. We’re just trying to figure out what the best combination is and make sure that it’s safe for patients.
How Is High-Risk Myeloma Assessed?
/in Evolve Myeloma, Evolve Myeloma Treatment, MM Programs, MM Treatments and Clinical Trials, MM Videos TC, Multiple Myeloma /by Kara RayburnHow Is High-Risk Myeloma Assessed? from Patient Empowerment Network on Vimeo.
Expert Dr. Jeffrey Matous explains how myeloma risk is determined, including staging, genetic analysis, and discusses the frequency of high-risk myeloma in patients.
Dr. Jeffrey Matous is a myeloma specialist at the Colorado Blood Cancer Institute and the assistant chair in myeloma research for Sarah Cannon Research Institute. Learn more about Dr. Matous.
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Transcript:
Katherine:
You mentioned high-risk myeloma earlier. How do you determine if a patient is high risk or low risk?
Dr. Jeffrey Matous:
Absolutely, so this is not uniformly agreed upon among myeloma doctors, but in general, we assess risk based on a few different things. One is called staging, and we stage myeloma unlike any other cancer, so it’s not staged like breast cancer, or lung cancer, or prostate cancer. It’s staged according to something called R-ISS, RISS, and you get, basically, a one, two, or a three.
Those are your stages, and in general, if your stage III, you have higher risk disease, but even more than that, we’re beginning to understand how myeloma cells misbehave at the genetic level, and we know that there are certain genetic findings inside the myeloma cell that can convey higher risk features. It’s important to stress to patients that these are not genetic findings that they were born with or can pass on through hereditary.
These are findings that occurred during the life of the patient that occurred by chance and developed inside that cell that turned into myeloma, and those are the genetic changes that we’re talking about. And we know that certain of these genetic changes confer higher risk disease. And in general, Katherine, if I see 100 people with myeloma, about 85 of the 100 will fall into what I call a standard risk category and about 15 percent will fall into what we call the high-risk category.
Katherine:
Okay. That’s really good to know. Thank you.
Myeloma Treatment: Who Is Stem Cell Transplant Appropriate For?
/in Evolve Myeloma, Evolve Myeloma Treatment, MM Programs, MM Treatments and Clinical Trials, MM Videos TC, Multiple Myeloma /by Kara RayburnMyeloma Treatment: Who Is Stem Cell Transplant Appropriate For? from Patient Empowerment Network on Vimeo.
Stem cell transplant can be an effective and viable myeloma treatment, but who is the treatment appropriate for? Expert Dr. Jeffrey Matous explains how stem cell transplants work and reviews factors that must be considered when determining if a patient is a candidate for this treatment option.
Dr. Jeffrey Matous is a myeloma specialist at the Colorado Blood Cancer Institute and the assistant chair in myeloma research for Sarah Cannon Research Institute. Learn more about Dr. Matous.
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Transcript:
Katherine:
Stem cell transplant is often considered for myeloma patients. Can you talk about who this treatment option might be appropriate for?
Dr. Jeffrey Matous:
Absolutely, so we’ve known for decades that, what I call high-dose chemotherapy, also called stem cell transplant, is a very effective and very potent treatment of myeloma and we’ve shown that time and time again in clinical trials, including some recent ones that are published just in 2022.
And so, high-dose chemotherapy and stem cell transplant is not for everyone. You have to be fit enough to undergo it, and this is not age-determined. It’s fitness-determined. And then, a lot of people live a long way from centers that perform high-dose chemotherapy and stem cell transplants.
If patients have to travel hundreds of miles, then sometimes that comes into play. “Hey, I just can’t do this. I can’t get the time off, and uproot, and bring a caregiver, and travel 300 miles to get this care,” so sometimes that comes into play. Physician bias definitely comes into play. We know that some physicians are stronger proponents of high-dose chemotherapy and stem cell transplant, and I fall into that category, but we have other physicians that may not even bring it up as an option to their patients. We know, for example, that African Americans and other minorities are notoriously under-referred for high-dose chemotherapy and stem cell transplant. A lot of decisions go into that, and again, this is one of those situations where if you’re transplant-eligible, that means you’re young and vigorous, and on paper, a candidate. You want to go, at the very minimum, consult with physicians that do high-dose chemotherapy and stem cell transplant and hear about that option.
Questions and Considerations When Making Myeloma Treatment Decisions
/in Evolve Myeloma, Evolve Myeloma Advocacy, MM Newly Diagnosed, MM Programs, MM Resources ND, MM Resources TC, MM Treatments and Clinical Trials, Multiple Myeloma /by Kara RayburnQuestions and Considerations When Making Myeloma Treatment Decisions from Patient Empowerment Network on Vimeo.
What should be considered when making a myeloma treatment decision? Expert Dr. Jeffrey Matous discusses key factors involved in choosing therapy and provides a list of questions to ask your doctor to guide optimal care.
Dr. Jeffrey Matous is a myeloma specialist at the Colorado Blood Cancer Institute and the assistant chair in myeloma research for Sarah Cannon Research Institute. Learn more about Dr. Matous.
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Transcript:
Katherine:
What factors impact treatment decisions?
Dr. Jeffrey Matous:
Well, there are so many. One of the key ones is fitness, and fitness is a term that myeloma doctors use and rely on tremendously.
And fitness, more or less, falls into a couple different categories. It’s more complex than that, obviously, but generally speaking, it’s too old or too frail, or young and vigorous and I stress to my patients that vigorous or frail is not determined by chronological age. It’s determined by your physiologic age. That’s really critical, so determining what your patient’s overall fitness is, is really important in myeloma. And then, we have to assess the risk of myeloma. I think we’ll talk about this a little bit later, because not all myeloma is the same and we treat myelomas differently depending on risk, certainly. And then, patient preference is a huge part, because there are so many ways to treat myeloma these days that we explore options with the patients and sometimes patients have pretty strong opinions about, you know, one type of treatment or the other, for example.
Katherine:
What testing should take place following a myeloma diagnosis?
Dr. Jeffrey Matous:
Testing in myeloma is multifaceted, because myeloma can affect patients in so many different ways. For example, it involves radiology studies to look for bone disease, urine work to see if the kidneys are affected by myeloma, a lot of blood work, and then, we also do a lot of testing to make sure that we understand the whole health of the patient, because that comes into play so much when we’re making treatment decisions in myeloma.
Katherine:
What advice do you have for patients and caregivers related to working with their healthcare team in choosing a therapy?
Dr. Jeffrey Matous:
Yeah. I think the big thing is to do some research on your own, but really, ask questions when you see your physician. I mean, ask questions about, for example, what are my treatment options? Are there clinical trials that might be available to me? What’s on the cutting edge in myeloma? What are the standard therapies? What are the pros and cons? And a question I often counsel patients to ask when they’re seeking other opinions is if you had 100 people like me and you treated them this way, how many would do well and how many would not do so well, and prognosis, and so forth. And then, the other thing I think is really important sometimes is gauging how experienced your physician is in treating myeloma, because we actually have data that shows that patients who are treated in myeloma centers actually fair a little better than those who are not.
Involving a myeloma expert in your care doesn’t necessarily mean you have to get your care at that center. It just means you may want a myeloma expert on your team. Pretty much every doctor I know welcomes a myeloma person on their team, because the field is so rapidly evolving. It’s really hard to keep up with for a lot of people.
What Are Potential Telemedicine Risks for Myeloproliferative Neoplasm Patients?
/in MPN Newly Diagnosed, MPN Programs, MPN TelemEDucation, MPN TelemEDucation Tool Box, MPN Treatments and Clinical Trials, MPN Videos ND, MPN Videos TC, Myeloproliferative Neoplasms /by Kara RayburnWhat Are Potential Telemedicine Risks for Myeloproliferative Neoplasm Patients? from Patient Empowerment Network on Vimeo.
What risks should myeloproliferative neoplasm (MPN) patients be aware of with telemedicine? Experts Dr. AnaMaria Lopez from Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center, Dr. Krisstina Gowin from University of Arizona Cancer Center, and patient Lisa Hatfield share their perspectives and advice. Watch as they discuss potential risks in MPN patient care, how to advocate for the continuation of telemedicine, and advice for patients to work toward optimal wellness.
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Transcript:
Lisa Hatfield:
Are there any risks or drawbacks that you see to telehealth or telemedicine for digital health?
Dr. AnaMaria Lopez:
The most important thing is to remember that the technology is a tool, and if the person feels that there’s a limitation, so, for example, if the patient is seen and they say their heart is racing or skipping beats or something, now, there are ways, there are electronic stethoscope, so you can really do a full exam except for palpation through telemedicine. But not everybody has that even in a clinic, but certainly in our own home, we don’t have that technology. So if a patient is expressing a concern for which the clinician really feels that needs a closer evaluation, then that’s the right next step, so we’re not…the technology is a tool to help us care for people, and if it’s not all available right there, then we need to see the patient in person. So I think that’s the risk is just sometimes people may feel limited like, “Oh, well, I’m not really sure It’s okay, I’m not really sure I need to see you, or you need to go here or go there for the care.”
And the other, which is a really big threat, is that part of the reason we did 70 years work in a couple months is because it was reimbursed, and we’re reaching the end of the pandemic, the federal…and with that, the payers may go backwards. We all know that if that happens, we will go backwards in telemedicine. [chuckle] There will just be decreased, decreased use. And it may lead to people then going back to traveling for four hours, waiting, only to be told, “Oh, you know what? There’s not this. This clinical trial doesn’t work for you.” So we don’t want to lose ground. And part of not losing ground is that we really need to continue to have advocacy around reimbursement.
Lisa Hatfield:
Thank you, Dr. Lopez. And I feel compelled, just to follow up with one more question regarding that, because I’m very passionate about this. With some of these rules and guidelines coming to an end, I know in my particular state that I will no longer be able to access my specialist. I see a myeloma specialist. We do not have any here locally. I can access a specialist via telemedicine. I will not have that opportunity. So as all of us know, there are disparities and there are financial disparities in cancer patients. There are racial disparities in cancer patients, there are socioeconomic disparities. Telemedicine has been a tremendous…has had a tremendous impact on the care and the outcomes and the quality of life of so many patients. So as a patient and as an advocate, do you have any recommendations? Do I go to my doctor and say, “Okay, how can I move forward and still talk to my specialist, who’s out of state? Do I go to my state legislature? Do I talk to my insurance company? How can we get this to continue?” Because this has had such a significant impact on the quality of life and on the outcomes for patients, who otherwise, would not have been able to access that care.
Dr. AnaMaria Lopez:
Yeah, I mean, I think all of the above. Partnering with other advocates, the American Telemedicine Association has a map that kind of says where are all the shifting sands regarding the different rules and legislative changes. But I think it’s led us to a place, where we are all advocates and where physicians, nurses, patients, pharmacists, everybody in the same way that we do team-based care, that we do team-based advocacy and it’s all for our patients.
Lisa Hatfield:
Great. Thank you for that. Dr. Gowin, any last words that you may have about accessing specialists or telemedicine options?
Dr. Krisstina Gowin:
Well, I think we covered the basics, but I just want to end with just how empowering the access to digital health interventions really is. And so I don’t think there is a one-size-fits-all approach to every patient. So what I would encourage patients to do is just to really think, “How do I compliment my care? What am I missing? How do I achieve my best wellness? And how do I get those resources in my home to make them more convenient for me?” And to start doing some research and self-advocacy to really get those resources because they are out there and in almost…in every domain, there is now a digital version that is accessible to you now.
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How Is Telemedicine Influencing Personalized Medicine for MPN Patients?
/in MPN Newly Diagnosed, MPN Programs, MPN TelemEDucation, MPN TelemEDucation Tool Box, MPN Treatments and Clinical Trials, MPN Videos ND, MPN Videos TC, Myeloproliferative Neoplasms /by Kara RayburnHow Is Telemedicine Influencing Personalized Medicine for MPN Patients? from Patient Empowerment Network on Vimeo.
How can myeloproliferative neoplasm (MPN) personalized medicine be influenced by telemedicine? Expert Dr. Krisstina Gowin from University of Arizona Cancer Center explains how telemedicine helps create a more personalized and precision-based approach for optimal MPN patient wellness.
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Transcript:
Lisa Hatfield:
Dr. Gowin, can you provide or share some examples of how telemedicine is influencing personalized medicine and MPN care, and how can MPN patients best advocate for themselves to get the latest in MPN care?
Dr. Krisstina Gowin:
Well, I think it’s going back to some of the conversations we’ve already had, is that now with telemedicine, you can really access academic centers no matter where you are. And so rural areas now can go to academic centers, very accessible without travel, and so what that lends to is more access to precision-based clinical trials, and very often now we’re doing next-generation sequencing panels for patients with MPN. We’re looking at what are the genetic features of the disease and we may be accruing trials based on those genetic features. And so that kind of conversation really only happens at academic centers, and so I think it’s really allowing those that live far away, a few hours away, to really have those personalized and precision-based conversations. And then tying in again the aspect of integrative medicine. And then what is integrative medicine all about is personalizing your treatment plan, asking what are your goals, what is your lifestyle, what is your culture, and how do we really get you on a plan that makes sense for you, that is local for you and sustainable for you to really achieve your optimum wellness?
And so if I were counseling patients listening to this, I would say, start with the in-state academic centers and say, “What are the telemedicine services there? Is there an integrative medicine department there”? And then get a quarterback within that department and say, “Okay, this is the plan,” and then that quarterback can say, “Well, now let’s look local. What do you have? What are your resources there? Let me do some homework with you and hook you up with really evidence-based high quality providers to achieve your personalized needs in your local community.” And I think that’s how we’re really going to get all of our patients in a precision and personalized approach no matter where they live, and that’s again, the beauty of telemedicine and digital health.
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How Will Advanced Technologies Enhance Myeloproliferative Neoplasm Care?
/in MPN Newly Diagnosed, MPN Programs, MPN TelemEDucation, MPN TelemEDucation Tool Box, MPN Treatments and Clinical Trials, MPN Videos ND, MPN Videos TC, Myeloproliferative Neoplasms /by Kara RayburnHow Will Advanced Technologies Enhance Myeloproliferative Neoplasm Care? from Patient Empowerment Network on Vimeo.
How will myeloproliferative neoplasm (MPN) care be enhanced by advanced technologies? Experts Dr. Krisstina Gowin from University of Arizona Cancer Center and Dr. Ana Maria Lopez from Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center share information about how technology can help manage symptom burden, risk factors, and the patient experience for enhanced MPN care.
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Transcript:
Lisa Hatfield:
So, Dr. Gowin, do you have anything to add on, how MPN care or just cancer care, in general, could change with different technologies? We didn’t touch a lot on things like artificial intelligence and that type of thing, and we can speak to that or any other type of technology that you’re familiar with.
Dr. Krisstina Gowin:
Well, I think the artificial intelligence aspect is really going to change the paradigm again on how we’re designing, studies. And I think one of the biggest challenges that we have in myeloma and as well as myeloproliferative neoplasms, is to think about how do we optimally sequence our therapies to achieve best survival, right? And I think this is a wonderful problem to have. We have now not only one JAK inhibitor on the market, but several and more in the pipeline and several other therapeutic targets. And so now the question is which therapy and when do we employ it? So things like artificial intelligence will help us to answer that question with machine learning decision tree analysis, all of that is going to be answered through those kind of platforms. And so I think that is going to be a shift we will see in the next five years is many different machine-based learning algorithms to better understand those problems we cannot have tackled traditionally otherwise.
Sensors though is another one, right? And so a big thing in MPNs is not only addressing the blood counts and reducing risk of thrombosis, and to address symptom burden, but it’s really addressing lifestyle because it’s things like cardiovascular disease, stroke that really we’re worried about as some of the sequelae of having the disease and what we’re trying to prevent with therapeutics. And so even going back to the NCCN guidelines, it’s addressing cardiovascular risk factors as part of our core treatment goals. And so how do we really do that? And it’s really through lifestyle medicine and that’s where the sensors come in. And so now we have, these Fitbits and smartphones that connect to our Apple watches and we have Garmins and all these wonderful devices that are prompting us to move more, prompting us to be cognizant of our heart rate and stress response prompting us to meditate. And so I can envision those evolving over time and connecting to the EMR and being very seamlessly interwoven into our clinical trials. And we’re already doing that. In fact, we’re talking about doing one very soon in MPN patients. And so I think the sensors are gonna be another big way that we’re going to be integrating, into our clinical trials and symptom management tools.
Lisa Hatfield:
That’s fascinating. Thank you for that. And Dr. Lopez, do you have anything to add about other technologies and how they may affect cancer care in the future?
Dr. Ana Maria Lopez:
Sure. When Dr. Gowin mentioned the sensors, it just reminded me, we’re building this new building, patient care building and oncology will be there. And I did a tour recently, and we’re used to go to the doctor, you stop in, they get your blood pressure, they get your weight, et cetera. Here, you’ll walk in directly to your exam room and you check in at a kiosk, so you just kinda check in [chuckle] with a little robot kiosk, and then it’ll tell you where you’re going. You’ll go to Room 3, let’s say, and Room 3 will say, “Welcome, Lisa.” [chuckle] And so you know that you’re in the right place. And you’ll walk in, there’s your gown, you’ll sit in the exam chair, and the exam chair automatically is gonna take your vital signs. So it just seems, really these built-in aspects to the technology. And one of the things, again, what I just love about this work is that it’s a very interdisciplinary, multidisciplinary. And one of the projects that we were working on, which it ties into this, when I was in Arizona with the telemedicine program is we worked with the College of Architecture and with this concept of smart buildings.
Dr. Ana Maria Lopez:
So it’s kind of like that. Why should you do these different sensors that detect, but that it could also detect. You might walk into the room and you might be really nervous as you might be really cold, and it would detect that and it would warm the room for you. Or you might be coming in and be having hot flashes and it would just cool the room for you. So the technology has so much potential to really improve the patient experience.
Lisa Hatfield:
And that’s amazing to me. I think that would be incredible to walk into a building to have that experience, as long as it doesn’t take away the compassion and care I get from my providers. I am so fortunate to have extraordinary providers, so I don’t think it will ever take over that aspect of it, I think that is a fear people have, especially with artificial intelligence and that type of thing, I think it can only go so far. Can’t provide the humanness that’s required for patient care, so yeah.
Dr. Ana Maria Lopez:
Yeah. These are tools.
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