Tag Archive for: Donna Catamero

CAR T-Cell Therapy Support | Questions to Ask About the Process

What questions should patients ask when considering CAR T-cell therapy? Nurse practitioner Donna Catamero shares key advice for patients and care partners, available resources, and emphasizes the importance of financial and logistical assistance when accessing treatment.

Donna Catamero is a Nurse Practitioner and associate director of the Multiple Myeloma Clinical Research Program at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City. Learn more about Donna Catamero

See More From Thrive CAR T-Cell Therapy

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Planning for CAR T-Cell Therapy | Advice for Myeloma Patients

Current and Emerging CAR T-Cell Therapies for Myeloma

Current and Emerging CAR T-Cell Therapies for Myeloma

CAR T-Cell Therapy | Key Considerations for Myeloma Patients

CAR T-Cell Therapy | Key Considerations for Myeloma Patients

Transcript:

Katherine Banwell:

When meeting with someone considering CAR T-cell therapy, what are some questions that they should be asking about the process? 

Donna Catamero:

So, I think first, “Am I a candidate for CAR T?” Certain comorbidities may put patients at higher risk for complications, or they might need to have additional testing – lung and heart functions – but “Am I a good candidate?” 

“Do I have caregiver support?” Again, support network of caregivers for patients, because patients do need to have someone with them during that CAR T process, and “What are the resources available to me receiving CAR T?” Patients live far from CAR T centers. What kind of support that we can provide patients – is it hotel stays, is it transportation – to really get patients to their CAR T therapies? 

Katherine Banwell:

Right. There’s the whole financial aspect of therapy that some – it can be a difficult situation for some patients. 

Donna Catamero:

We’re very fortunate that both products have patient support services that help patients. They will provide hotel, transportation, food. 

So, we are trying to get more patients to the CAR T therapy. So, geographical constraints shouldn’t be a barrier, so we are really helping bridge patients to get to the CAR T centers.   

 So, to access some of these resources, talk to your healthcare team, social work, but also, again, I empower patients. Go directly to the manufacturer – Johnson & Johnson, Bristol Myers Squibb – you can go directly to their websites and find out more information, but your healthcare team can kind of, again, be a bridge to get patients that support.  

Being Empowered | The Importance of Understanding Myeloma

How can patients and care partners feel empowered when facing a myeloma diagnosis? Nurse practitioner Donna Catamero highlights the importance of education, shared decision-making, and a strong emotional support network, along with using trusted sources for reliable information. 

Donna Catamero is a Nurse Practitioner and associate director of the Multiple Myeloma Clinical Research Program at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City. Learn more about Donna Catamero.

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CAR T-Cell Therapy | Care and Monitoring Post-Treatment

Current and Emerging CAR T-Cell Therapies for Myeloma

Current and Emerging CAR T-Cell Therapies for Myeloma

CAR T-Cell Therapy Support | Questions to Ask About the Process

CAR T-Cell Therapy Support | Questions to Ask About the Process

Transcript:

Katherine Banwell:

As a provider, how do you empower care partners and patients who have been diagnosed with myeloma? 

Donna Catamero:

So, education, education, education. Knowledge is power. Learn everything you can, attend your support groups, attend educational seminars, and be part of your decision making. So, we called that shared decision making. You’re part of the healthcare team. You need to tell your providers what your goals of therapy are, and in order to do that, you really need to educate yourself on what kind of therapies, what are the supportive care options, and be part of that discussion. 

Katherine Banwell:

And how does one educate themselves? Are there websites that you would recommend they go to? 

Donna Catamero:

There are several foundations and organizations that I find very useful for patients. Our instinct is to go to the Google machine and type in our thoughts, but we do have great foundations. The Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation, the International Myeloma Foundation, HealthTree – all great resources for patients. They provide education, educational seminars, support groups, mentors. There are hotlines where patients can call and get the information right at their fingertips, and this is really from reliable sources. 

Katherine Banwell:

How do you counsel patients on coping with the emotional side of myeloma? What advice and resources are available for them there? 

Donna Catamero:

So, it’s important to try to get yourself a good emotional support network, so your family, your friends, your fellow myeloma community can really provide support for patients, and really – when you get – I’m going to repeat that. When you get a devastating diagnosis, patients can tend to withdraw from family and friends, but family and friends – your support network – can really help patients get through very trying times, so, your caregivers, your family, your friends, and like I said, the myeloma community is here to help. 

Undergoing CAR T-Cell Therapy? Why Managing Overall Health Is Essential

Planning to undergo CAR T-cell therapy? Nurse practitioner Donna Catamero explains the importance of maintaining overall health before CAR T-cell therapy, staying organized during treatment, and how healthcare teams are improving the management and anticipation of side effects.

Donna Catamero is a Nurse Practitioner and associate director of the Multiple Myeloma Clinical Research Program at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City. Learn more about Donna Catamero.

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CAR T-Cell Therapy | Key Considerations for Myeloma Patients

CAR T-Cell Therapy | Key Considerations for Myeloma Patients

Planning for CAR T-Cell Therapy | Advice for Myeloma Patients

Planning for CAR T-Cell Therapy | Advice for Myeloma Patients 

CAR T-Cell Therapy Support | Questions to Ask About the Process

CAR T-Cell Therapy Support | Questions to Ask About the Process

Transcript:

Katherine Banwell:

Wow, that’s great. Why is it so important for those undergoing CAR T-cell therapy to manage their overall health? 

Donna Catamero:

So, the healthier you go into a treatment, the better you’re going to feel, and this includes your activity level, so, really maintaining activity, getting out there, walking, exercising, eating things in moderation, having a healthier diet, and I just think the better you feel going into therapy, the better you’re going to tolerate therapies. 

Katherine Banwell:

Okay. Managing life before and after CAR T-cell therapy can be a really big undertaking. What tips do you have for staying organized at home, especially related to medication and follow-up appointments?  

Donna Catamero:

So, CAR T therapy can be very intense up front. There’s a lot of appointments, a lot of things you need to do to prepare yourself to get ready to collect your T cells and to receive your T cells, and it’s a lot of appointments, a lot of scheduling, and treatments to gear up for that cell infusion. So, what we do for our patients is getting calendars for patients, diaries for patients, to really keep them organized. It is a lot up front, but then, after a patient receives their T cells, they are then more on a maintenance phase, and life will get easier. It’s just heavy up front.  

Katherine Banwell:

Would you say that healthcare teams are getting better at managing and anticipating CAR T side effects? 

Donna Catamero:

Absolutely. So, we have several years of experience now. We can anticipate the timing of certain side effects, we manage them very well, many institutions are now doing CAR T therapies as an outpatient, so we really have gotten a great handle on how to manage these side effects, when to anticipate these side effects. And then, even long-term monitoring and managing patients several months post the CAR T infusion, infection prevention, etc., we have done quite well and been successful with our patient outcomes.   

Current and Emerging CAR T-Cell Therapies for Myeloma

What are the current and emerging CAR T-cell therapies for myeloma? Nurse practitioner Donna Catamero discusses approved CAR T-cell therapies for multiple myeloma, who they’re appropriate for, ongoing research to expand their use, and treatment options if the disease returns after CAR T-cell therapy.

Donna Catamero is a Nurse Practitioner and associate director of the Multiple Myeloma Clinical Research Program at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City. Learn more about Donna Catamero.

See More From Thrive CAR T-Cell Therapy

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Undergoing CAR T-Cell Therapy? Why Managing Overall Health Is Essential

Undergoing CAR T-Cell Therapy? Why Managing Overall Health Is Essential

Being Empowered | The Importance of Understanding Myeloma

CAR T-Cell Therapy Support | Questions to Ask About the Process

CAR T-Cell Therapy Support | Questions to Ask About the Process

Transcript:

Katherine Banwell:

Donna, welcome. Thank you so much for joining us. Would you please introduce yourself and tell us about your role at Mount Sinai? 

Donna Catamero:

Sure. I’m Donna Catamero, I’m a nurse practitioner, and I’m the associate director of the Multiple Myeloma Clinical Research Program at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City. 

Katherine Banwell:

Would you tell us about the currently approved CAR T-cell therapies and which myeloma patients they may be right for?  

Donna Catamero:

So, currently, we have two products available for patients. The first is idecabtagene vicleucel (Abecma), and it’s approved for patients with relapsed/refractory disease who have received two prior lines of therapy, and this includes exposure to an immunomodulatory agent, so, your lenalidomide (Revlimid), your pomalidomide (Pomalyst), a proteasome inhibitor, and that includes Velcade/Kyprolis, and an anti-CD38 monoclonal antibody, so this is your daratumumab (Darzalex) or isatuximab-irfc (Sarclisa). 

The second product we have to offer patients is ciltacabtagene autoleucel (Carvykti), and this is approved for patients a little bit earlier on, so, also relapsed/refractory disease who have received at least one prior line of therapy, and it must have included proteasome inhibitor and an immunomodulatory agent, and they need to be refractory to Revlimid. So, what “refractory” means is they relapsed while taking the Revlimid.  

And both these therapies are important for patients, so if patients are inquiring about CAR T therapy, they should ask their providers what product is available for that. 

Katherine Banwell:

Let’s talk about research in CAR T-cell therapy. What new options are being studied, and how far along is the research? 

Donna Catamero:

So, we’re actually very excited. So, the two products, Abecma and Carvykti, we’re actually looking at them in newly diagnosed myeloma patients, and this is regardless of if patients are eligible for transplant or not, and we’re looking at comparing transplant versus CAR T therapies, so we’re hoping to move CAR T therapies for newly diagnosed – so, first-line therapy – so this is very exciting, and we’re also investigating new products with dual targets. 

So, right now, our two approved CAR Ts, they target BCMA, so now we’re looking at CAR Ts that are targeting BCMA and another target – so, GPRC5D or CD19 – so this means that the CAR T is grabbing onto more cells, so, in theory, it would have a higher cell kill.  

And then, we’re also investigating CAR Ts that we call off-the-shelf, so, autologous CAR Ts, so, donor CAR Ts, and this is actually exciting for patients who maybe can’t wait for manufacturing of their T cells, and now we can use donor T cells. So, these are earlier on studies, so we’re hoping within the next few years, more options will be available for patients.  

Katherine Banwell:

Yeah. What happens if the myeloma comes back after T-cell therapy? What are the treatment options available beyond CAR T? 

Donna Catamero:

Earlier on, we were hoping that CAR T would be our cure, but patients are getting very long, durable remissions from their CAR T therapy. We see patients who are five, seven, eight years out from their CAR T therapy, so patients do have a long time in remission, but the myeloma can come back. 

And what do we do with these patients? We actually have been very successful managing patients post a CAR T relapse, so we are looking at bispecific antibodies, which were recently approved over the past several years, and we see patients who have had relapses from their CAR T go back into a remission with these bispecific therapies, and again have long, durable remissions. So, we can absolutely manage patients if their myeloma comes back after CAR T therapy. 

Advice for Inquiring About Myeloma CAR T-Cell Therapy Clinical Trials

How can patients find CAR T-cell therapy clinical trials? Nurse practitioner Donna Catamero shares resources for identifying trials, such as ClinicalTrials.gov, and encourages patients to ask providers about available trials and eligibility.

Donna Catamero is a Nurse Practitioner and associate director of the Multiple Myeloma Clinical Research Program at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City. Learn more about Donna Catamero.

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Understanding Myeloma Therapy Targets BCMA and GPRC5D

How Is CAR T-Cell Therapy Research Advancing Myeloma Care?

How Is CAR T-Cell Therapy Research Advancing Myeloma Care?

How Can Myeloma Patients Access CAR T-Cell Therapy Clinical Trials?

How Can Myeloma Patients Access CAR T-Cell Therapy Clinical Trials?

Transcript:

Katherine Banwell:

How can patients find CAR T clinical trials that might be right for them? 

Donna Catamero:

So, ClinicalTrials.gov can point patients in the right direction. Again, the foundations – the Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation, the International Myeloma Foundation – can help direct patients toward clinical trials that might be right for them.  

Katherine Banwell:

How can patients start the conversation with their provider? What questions should they be asking about trials? 

Donna Catamero:

So, first, when you’re given options for treatment, you should always ask – always, always ask – “Am I eligible for a clinical trial?” 

All the therapies we have available today for patients initially came from clinical trials. In our early CAR T therapies, those patients had access to those drugs years before the general myeloma population, so clinical trials are key to really moving the therapies for tomorrow.  

What Is a FISH Test?

What is a FISH Test? from Patient Empowerment Network on Vimeo.

What is a FISH test for multiple myeloma patients? Watch as expert Donna Catamero explains how fluorescent in situ hybridization (FISH) testing is used, and myeloma patient and Empowerment Lead Lisa Hatfield shares her experience with FISH testing and her advice to other patients.

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Transcript:

Donna Catamero:

So, FISH is a cytogenetic technique. So, what we do is, when we do the bone marrow, we send that off and we look at the genetics. Like I said, it’s a snapshot. And certain mutations will put patients in different risk stratifications, so we normally do this at the time of diagnosis and then with each relapse.

In a FISH test, a bone marrow biopsy is taken to map out the genetic material of a cell using fluorescent dyes. These dyes show specific parts of chromosomes and help locate genetic issues like 11;14 translocation, 17 deletion, and others that are important in determining multiple myeloma treatment. If you have not had a FISH test, make sure to ask your doctor if the test should be performed to aid in your diagnosis and treatment.

 

Lisa Hatfield:

The first time I heard FISH test I had no idea what my doctor was talking about. It was actually a nurse practitioner who works with my myeloma specialist who said, “Your FISH test came back, and you have two abnormalities. One of them is called translocation 11;14, standard risk. And one is called monosomy 13, which sometime in the past used to be considered a higher risk but apparently it’s not anymore.” She was trying to explain this to me. I had no idea what she meant what a FISH test was. As time went on and I started to study a little bit more, do a little bit more research on myeloma, I understand the significance and the importance of having a FISH test done for anyone who’s getting diagnosed at a local hospital or community cancer center. I encourage everyone to make sure they can have a FISH test done even if that means consulting with a myeloma specialist to ensure that they can find those cytogenetic abnormalities or to test for those. Because that will help guide your treatment and your prognosis going forward. You want to know what those cytogenetic abnormalities are. They’ll be tracking those over time. So a FISH test is kind of confusing. But without going into too much detail, it’s an interesting test that they can do. It’s very helpful if it’s done at diagnosis. Important to be done at diagnosis,  so those genetic abnormalities can be tracked over time through further testing.

An Expert Reflects on Hopeful Advances in Myeloma Treatment

An Expert Reflects on Hopeful Advances in Myeloma Treatment from Patient Empowerment Network on Vimeo.

Research is advancing quickly in myeloma. Donna Catamero, a nurse practitioner specializing in myeloma, shares why she is optimistic about the future of myeloma care and treatment.

Donna Catamero is Associate Director of Myeloma Translational Research at Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City.

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Transcript:

Katherine:

When it comes to myeloma research and emerging treatment options, what are you excited about specifically?

Donna:

So, I’m very excited about CAR T therapies, bispecific therapies and even trispecific therapies. And this is really harvesting a patient’s immune system to attack the myeloma cell. And I’m really excited about the results we’re seeing in the clinical trials. We’re seeing for a single agent therapy – and most patients know that with myeloma therapies they’re on combination therapies, but what we’re seeing is, with a single drug, that we can achieve very, very deep responses and very durable remission. So, patients who’ve had several relapses and are on their eighth, ninth, 10th line of therapy – we’re now able to achieve deep and durable remissions, which even five years ago was almost unheard of. So, this is really a very exciting time in myeloma research. 

How Does Myeloma Testing Affect Care and Treatment?

How Does Myeloma Testing Affect Care and Treatment? from Patient Empowerment Network on Vimeo.

What is cytogenetic testing in myeloma? Donna Catamero, a nurse practitioner specializing in myeloma, describes this in-depth testing, including the FISH test, and how the results impact the care of patients.

Donna Catamero is Associate Director of Myeloma Translational Research at Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City.

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Transcript:

Katherine:

Blood and urine tests, bone marrow biopsy and imaging tests are all standard following a myeloma diagnosis, but what about more in-depth testing?

Because the terminology around biomarker testing varies, can you help break this down for patients, and how this in-depth testing is referred to in myeloma?

Donna:

So, biomarkers is a term that is commonly tossed around in many different cancer diagnoses and it means different things. But in general, it’s characteristics that can inform us about a diagnosis, about a patient’s prognosis and about their response to treatment. So, this can include things that we measure in the bloodwork, in the urine, even imaging. These are all things or markers that we look at to determine a patient’s either, like I said, response or risk stratification.

Katherine:

What about cytogenetics? What is that exactly and does that fit under the umbrella of biomarker testing?

Donna:

Yeah, so cytogenetics is a genetic snapshot of a patient’s cancer. So, it will give us a sense of how the disease will – the characteristics of how it will behave. But again, it’s just a snapshot and it’s not a precise science but certain mutations or certain genes will kind of inform us like “This might be maybe a more aggressive form and we need to do X, Y and Z.”

Katherine:

Which of these more in-depth tests are necessary in myeloma? Let’s start with the FISH test.

Donna:

So, FISH is a cytogenetic technique. So, what we do is, when we do the bone marrow, we send that off and we look at the genetics. Like I said, it’s a snapshot. And certain mutations will put patients in different risk stratifications, so we normally do this at the time of diagnosis and then with each relapse.

Katherine:

It seems that all of the test results can aid in determining outpatient’s risk. So, why is risk stratification so important?

Donna:

So, risk stratification is important.

It will give us a sense of how a patient might respond to certain treatments. Maybe a patient won’t respond as well to a stem cell transplant as someone with standard risk. So, we take this into account, but in this current time, in 2021, we don’t typically change our treatments according to risk. That’s why clinical research is very important because we’re studying right now patients with high-risk cytogenetics, do they do they better on certain therapies.

Katherine:

How do the results of these tests affect treatment choice and prognosis?

Donna:

So, someone who might have high-risk cytogenetics, we might want to be maybe more aggressive with our therapy. So, we might change how we want to maintain a patient. Usually, after a stem cell transplant, we give patients maintenance therapies. So, patients who have high-risk disease, we might change our strategy and have a more aggressive regimen in that maintenance setting. And with patients with higher risk, we probably will monitor them very, very closely in case – looking for signs for relapse. 

What Key Steps Should Follow a Myeloma Diagnosis?

What Key Steps Should Follow a Myeloma Diagnosis? from Patient Empowerment Network on Vimeo.

A myeloma diagnosis can be overwhelming, so where do you start? Donna Catamero, a nurse practitioner specializing in myeloma, shares key advice for patients and encourages self-advocacy to access the best care.

Donna Catamero is Associate Director of Myeloma Translational Research at Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City.

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Transcript:

Katherine:

Donna, would you please introduce yourself for us?

Donna:

I’m Donna Catamero. I’m a nurse practitioner at the Mt. Sinai Hospital in New York City, where I focus on clinical research and treatment of myeloma patients.

Katherine:

So, as a nurse practitioner specializing in myeloma, what’s your role in the healthcare team?

Donna:

So, I have several roles. So, the first role is caring for multiple myeloma patients, in particular, treating patients on clinical trials, managing their side effects, managing their treatment. My other role is a nurse educator. So, I help train our nursing staff and our research staff on myeloma, new therapies, “Myeloma 101”. So, I really help train and on-board our new staffing.

Katherine:

Excellent. When first diagnosed with myeloma, what three key pieces of advice do you have for patients and caregivers?

Donna:

So, number one is be your best advocate. So, learn everything you can learn about your disease. Learn about the treatments, the side effects, the treatment schedules. Don’t be afraid to ask questions and it’s okay to ask a question multiple times because we might not commit it to memory. So, learn as much as you can; learn how the drugs work. That’s why I’m saying knowledge is power and really, knowledge will lead to you being your best advocate.

And number two, it’s okay to have a second set of ears with you. So, sometimes the situation might be overwhelming and we might not hear or understand what’s being told to us. So, it’s important to have someone, a loved one, a caregiver, with us, so that they can also hear what the healthcare team is telling them. And I know in the day and age of COVID, there may be restrictions for visitors in the healthcare setting, but we can do recordings. We can have loved ones on the phone, so that they can hear what’s being told. And number three, is do not be a martyr. There’s no need for anyone to suffer.

If you’re in pain, let your team know. We can provide a lot of supportive care and get you through the most difficult times of your diagnosis.

Katherine:

Why is it important that patients engage in their care and treatment decisions?

Donna:

We have many options we can offer patients. Back in the day when I first started in my nursing career, we had only a handful of treatment options for patient. Now, we have an entire toolbox of treatments we can offer patients. So, it’s important to understand the treatments, the side effects, the schedule, and see if that aligns with your treatment goals so that this way you can make a very informed decision.