The study reported patient characteristics, incidence rates, survival outcomes, comorbidities, and healthcare resource utilization (HCRU) of all adult Multiple Myeloma (MM) patients diagnosed in Finland between 2000 and 2021.
The real-world evidence (RWE) study was published by Annals of Hematology in July 2024. The study was sponsored by the pharmaceutical company Takeda and conducted by Medaffcon in collaboration with several leading experts. The Medical Writer for the study was Medaffcon’s Scientific Advisor, PhD Essi Havula.
Multiple myeloma (MM) is an incurable blood cancer that develops from plasma cells in the bone marrow. MM accounts for approximately 10 percent of all hematological cancers and primarily affects elderly individuals.
In Finland, the current median age at diagnosis is 70 years, and the age-standardized incidence rate is 2.5–3 cases per 100,000 people.
“This is the largest RWE study on multiple myeloma ever conducted in Finland. This is certainly the strength of this study,” says Medaffcon’s Scientific Advisor, PhD Essi Havula, who was the Medical Writer for the study.
The analysis included a total of 7,070 MM patients diagnosed over 21 years (2000-2021) and their 21,210 age-, gender-, and region-matched controls.
The average incidence of Multiple myeloma (MM) doubled during the study period. The average age-standardized incidence rate also increased significantly. A rise in incidence was particularly noted among the elderly population, indicating improved diagnostic practices.
MM rates increased from 4.11 to 8.33 per 100,000 people.
“Multiple myeloma (MM) is a cancer of the elderly. The increase in incidence can be explained largely by the aging population. Moreover, diagnostic methods have also improved significantly, meaning that the disease is likely diagnosed more frequently than before,” Medical Writer of the study, Essi Havula, explains.
Patients who received an autologous stem cell transplant (ASCT) had a median overall survival (mOS) of 9.2 years. For those without ASCT, it was only 2.7 years.
Among all MM patients, a significant increase in the median overall survival from 2.8 years (2000–2004) to 4.4 years (2017–2021) was observed.
Multiple myeloma (MM) patients had more comorbidities at baseline than their controls. They also used more healthcare resources (HCRU) than their controls. The longer median survival time and reduced risk of death suggest improved treatment outcomes for MM patients in Finland.
“When it comes to elderly patients, treatment is not straightforward. Appropriate treatment must be assessed on an individual basis, considering the patient’s overall condition. Prognosis is better for patients who are fit enough for stem cell transplantation,” says Medical Writer of the study, Essi Havula.
She adds that age alone does not define a patient’s overall health condition. Many of the older patients who have traditionally not been eligible for stem cell transplantations due to their high age, could in fact be fit enough for this treatment.
As the population continues to age, the number of patients with multiple myeloma (MM) will also increase. The main challenge remains the development of new, well-tolerated treatment regiments for the elderly and frail patients.
“There will be a follow-up to this study very soon, focusing particularly on infections,” says Medaffcon’s Scientific Advisor, PhD, and Medical Writer of this study, Essi Havula.
The adoption of new diabetes medications in Finland was active between 2012 and 2019, according to an RWE (Real World Evidence) study published in May 2024. The study was conducted by Medaffcon in collaboration with the pharmaceutical company Sanofi.
In the coming years, breakthroughs in neurological and psychiatric drug research are expected to change treatment practices and significantly improve patients’ quality of life. Medaffcon is contributing to this development by conducting, for example, RWE studies (Real World Evidence).
Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer deaths in Finland, with a particularly poor prognosis for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). It is often diagnosed at an advanced stage when treatment options are limited. A recently published retrospective registry-based real-world evidence (RWE) study on KRAS-mutated NSCLC patients in Finland addressed this issue.
Scientific Advisor
PhD
Essi joined Medaffcon in September 2023. Essi holds a PhD in biosciences and in her thesis she studied the genetics of sugar metabolism. After completing her pre- and postgraduate studies at the University of Helsinki, she transferred internationally to continue to study gene-diet interactions at the University of Sydney. Spanning over 15 years, Essi’s scientific career includes research in numerous fields including breast cancer and mitochondrial diseases.
Essi’s strengths include broad scientific and international background with special interests in personalized medicine, metabolic diseases and science popularization. At Medaffcon, Essi is particularly motivated by the utilization and communication of RWE studies to support better decision-making in our patient care and more broadly for our healthcare sector.
“Data driven decision making requires us as experts to process and communicate the vast amounts of data into a form that is accessible to all healthcare authorities. I’m looking forward to seeing how RWE studies can guide the development of personalized therapy solutions, that are not only economically the most efficient, but benefit the patients in the best possible manner.”
Data Scientist
MSc (Tech.)
Anna joined Medaffcon’s analytics team in the fall of 2021. She has a master’s degree in Bioinformation Technology from Aalto University, and her studies focused primarily on mathematical modeling and machine learning. She has worked at Aalto University’s Department of Neuroscience and Biomedical Engineering as a research assistant, as a teacher in a mathematical modeling course, and in the last years before Medaffcon as a data scientist in a startup developing a medical device.
Anna has a strong background in the application of statistics and especially machine learning methods to various datasets. Anna also has experience in conducting research, all the way from collecting data to analyzing the results and scientific writing. She is particularly interested in solving real-world problems faced by healthcare and medicine using mathematical modeling methods and artificial intelligence.
“The constantly increasing amount of health data, combined with the modern computational capacity and evolving modeling methods, create enormous potential for findings that could hardly be detected by purely manual examination.”
Scientific Advisor
PhD
Kai joined Medaffcon in September 2020 after five years of Post doctorate studies in Australia. In his PhD thesis, Kai studied the role of lipoprotein receptors in neuronal cell death and continued his studies on deciphering the mechanisms and testing potential therapeutics for neurodegenerative diseases at the University of Melbourne. Kai completed his university degrees at the University of Helsinki and the Neuroscience Center, which included one semester exchange at the Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand.
Due to his international educational background, Kai’s strengths include his adept ability to work in multicultural settings and cross disciplinary projects. Kai is fascinated by out-of-the-box scientific projects and how they emerge to challenge existing norms. “Data driven decision making, critical but constructive discussion and multifaceted cooperation can ensure a functional and healthy society in the face of future challenges. Together we are stronger and wiser.”
Sr. Scientific Advisor
RWE Lead
PhD
+358 50 345 2393
mariann.lassenius@medaffcon.fi
Mariann joined Medaffcon’s team in 2016 after finishing her PhD. The transition to real world evidence (RWE) research was a natural continuum to her previous research career. Through RWE studies, she has had the privilege to gain a broad insight into working with different stakeholders within the healthcare field. The vast proportion of her days goes towards interacting with clients, planning and performing RWE studies, and supporting Medaffcon’s RWE team. Subjects that keep her work interesting are the vast variability of customers and projects, problem-solving, and interacting with people.
“The number of RWE studies has increased since stakeholders within the healthcare industry have an increasing demand for knowledge-based decision making tools that need to be fulfilled. The future, therefore, has an ever-increasing emphasis on RWE”.
Biostatistician
Data Analysis Lead
MSc (Tech.)
+358 44 314 1597
iiro.toppila@medaffcon.fi
Iiro joined Medaffcon in March 2017 as a Biostatistician. For the preceding four years, he has worked as a research assistant in an academic study group, analyzing clinical and genetic patient data. Iiro holds a Master of Science degree in Technology in Bioinformation Technology.
Iiro’s strengths include his strong expertise in statistics and data-analysis, hands-on experience in working with sensitive patient data, and strong interdisciplinary communication skills with experts from various fields. In the field, he is particularly interested in the large data amounts made available with the revolution of technology and how the information received such data can potentially be utilized to draw concrete conclusions, both in order to understand the nature of diseases and to advance the goals of the pharmaceutical industry and patient treatment.
“Machine learning and AI-based solutions will have a major impact on the healthcare sector now and in the future. However, effectively utilizing the already collected and available health-data will have a higher importance in order to improve health-care”.