Dr Hans Lee on the Game-Changing Myeloma Research from ASH 2025

The American Society of Hematology (ASH) Annual Meeting in 2025 was a highly productive and exciting conference, particularly within the field of multiple myeloma (MM). The sheer volume of high-quality, impactful abstracts presented underscores the dramatic and accelerating progress we are currently witnessing in the treatment landscape for this complex hematologic malignancy.

In this installment of The OncoloGIST, Hans Lee, MD, director of Myeloma Research at Sarah Cannon Research Institute, discusses his top takeaways from the meeting.

Key Theme: Integrating Bispecific T-cell Antibodies

A dominant and recurrent theme emerging from several key presentations and discussions at ASH 2025 was the strategic incorporation of bispecific T-cell engager antibodies (BsAbs) into earlier lines of therapy for multiple myeloma.

Previously, these highly potent, off-the-shelf immunotherapies were often reserved for patients with heavily pre-treated or refractory disease. However, data presented this year strongly support their migration to:

• Earlier Relapsed/Refractory Multiple Myeloma (RRMM): The clinical data demonstrated that using BsAbs earlier in the relapse setting leads to significantly higher overall response rates (ORR) and, crucially, improved depth and durability of response. These results challenge the traditional step-wise approach to therapy.
• Newly Diagnosed Multiple Myeloma (NDMM): Initial reports from clinical trials investigating BsAbs in combination with or as part of induction therapy for newly diagnosed patients were met with considerable enthusiasm. These antibody-based immunotherapies are showing truly unprecedented response rates—often translating to high rates of minimal residual disease (MRD) negativity—and importantly, sustained efficacy even with longer follow-up periods.

The demonstrated efficacy and increasingly manageable safety profiles of these agents suggest that the incorporation of bispecific antibodies will be a transformative force, defining the direction of the field in the years immediately ahead.

A New Era of Progress and Potential Curability

More broadly, the atmosphere at ASH 2025 reflected the incredible and escalating pace of therapeutic development in multiple myeloma. We have seen remarkable progress over the last 10 to 20 years with the introduction of novel agents like proteasome inhibitors and immunomodulatory drugs. However, the last few years have seen a clear acceleration of this progress, driven by advanced immunotherapies such as BsAbs and CAR T-cell therapies.

This rapid innovation is not just exciting for researchers and clinicians; most importantly, it offers tremendous new hope to patients. The therapeutic approaches currently being supported by clinical data are showing unprecedented levels of efficacy and durability. Discussions are now moving beyond simply controlling the disease to actively exploring and striving for the curability of multiple myeloma.

The collective sense of excitement leaving the ASH 2025 meeting is palpable. It fuels the critical question: "What's next?" and motivates the continued drive to find innovative ways to achieve better, more profound, and more sustained outcomes for patients, which remains the ultimate goal of all research efforts.