COVID-19 Infections and Clinical Outcomes in Patients with Multiple Myeloma in New York City: A Cohort Study from Five Academic Centers

Patients with multiple myeloma have a compromised immune system, due to both the disease and antimyeloma therapies, and may therefore be particularly susceptible to COVID-19. Here, we report outcomes and risk factors for serious disease in patients with multiple myeloma treated at five large academic centers in New York City in the spring of 2020, during which it was a global epicenter of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic. Of 100 patients with multiple myeloma (male 58%; median age 68) diagnosed with COVID-19, 75 were admitted; of these, 13 patients (17%) were placed on invasive mechanical ventilation, and 22 patients (29%) expired. Of the 25 nonadmitted patients, 4 were asymptomatic. There was a higher risk of adverse outcome (intensive care unit admission, mechanical ventilation, or death) in Hispanics/Latinos ( = 21), OR = 4.7 (95% confidence interval, 1.3-16.7), and African American Blacks ( = 33), OR = 3.5 (1.1-11.5), as compared with White patients ( = 36). Patients who met the adverse combined endpoint had overall higher levels of inflammatory markers and cytokine activation. None of the other studied risk factors were significantly associated ( > 0.05) with adverse outcome: hypertension ( = 56), OR = 2.2 (0.9-5.4); diabetes ( = 18), OR = 0.9 (0.3-2.9); age >65 years ( = 63), OR = 1.8 (0.7-4.6); high-dose melphalan with autologous stem cell transplant