On February 2, 2024, world-renowned myeloma clinician and researcher Dr. S. Vincent Rajkumar took on the full role as Chairperson of the International Myeloma Foundation (IMF) Board of Directors.
In a Q&A interview, Dr. Rajkumar shared some of his experiences, thoughts, and vision for the IMF, as the new IMF Chairperson of the Board.
Our warmest congratulations for being appointed to this new leadership position. How do you feel about being named as the new IMF Chairperson of the Board?
I am truly honored. The IMF is an incredible organization, and I will be stepping into a role that was previously occupied by Dr. Brian G.M. Durie—a giant in the field of myeloma. I will strive to build upon Dr. Durie’s incredible legacy. I will work with the Board to empower the superb team at the IMF to excel and to greatly enhance our global impact on our four pillars, namely research, advocacy, support, and education. It is a major responsibility, and I will do my best to help the IMF leadership and team fulfill our mission.
As the new Chairperson of the Board, what is your vision for the IMF and for the myeloma community at large, given this transition that IMF President & CEO Yelak Biru describes as a “forward-looking approach focused on meeting the needs of those impacted by myeloma and progressing with purposeful, targeted innovation?”
Today, a cure for myeloma is within our reach thanks to major research advances over the last two decades. My vision is that the IMF will work collaboratively towards the goal of achieving a cure and enabling every myeloma patient in the world to receive the best care possible. We are well-poised to do this because we are an organization with a comprehensive approach that encompasses research, advocacy, support, and education.
One area that needs further growth is on the research front. We have a strong foundation through the International Myeloma Working Group (IMWG), and we must build on that. I intend to involve leaders in the field more closely with the IMF. By doing so, we can increase the number of innovative research studies that have the potential to make a major impact in the field.
As a distinguished myeloma researcher and as the IMF’s new Chairperson of the Board, what do you think are the most pressing unmet needs of myeloma patients that the IMF can help address in the not-so-distant future?
Myeloma treatments are increasingly complex and expensive. Given the IMF’s reach, we can really play a huge role in helping patients navigate the complexities of care. We need to strengthen our relationship with other organizations, particularly in the U.S., that share a common interest. We also need to develop new collaborations to help us in our mission of improving outcomes for myeloma patients worldwide. These collaborations should not just be on the research front, but also in terms of delivering the best patient support and education and advocating for affordable care. We should continue our efforts to reduce racial and economic disparities in accessing myeloma clinical trials and commercially available treatments. Most myeloma patients have been receiving active treatments on a continuous basis for many years. We can be a trusted resource on aspects of care that they need help with— whether connecting them with the right physicians or providing them with educational information or moral support. As the IMF founders intended: Until there is a cure, there is the IMF.
The IMF is dedicated to improving the quality of life of myeloma patients while working toward prevention and a cure through its four founding pillars: Research, Education, Support, and Advocacy. As the new IMF Chairperson of the Board, what do you foresee could become your lasting/impactful contributions to the IMF’s founding principles, most especially in Research?
Enabling myeloma patients to live a normal life span with the best quality of life is our goal. This, of course, can only be done by teams of people working together. An active search for the cure should be our focus since it is the one sure way of achieving this goal. In this regard, we should continue what we started in the ASCENT trial—a trial that tests the hypothesis that myeloma may be curable if we intervene early, during the asymptomatic stage, with best available treatments. I would be thrilled if we could start the next wave of cure trials.
I have been fortunate to work with the IMWG on multiple guidelines that help patients receive the best care. My personal goal in the next several years will be to get the IMWG more engaged in IMF-funded research projects. I would also be very pleased if we could continue to work closely with the International Myeloma Society (IMS), as we currently do, since there is enormous synergy in our partnership. The leaders of the IMS work closely with us through the IMWG. I will work hard to ensure that our organizations collaborate on guidelines and research projects.
About IMF Chairperson of the Board S. Vincent Rajkumar, MD
Dr. Rajkumar is a Professor of Medicine at the Mayo Clinic; a Member of the National Cancer Institute Myeloma Steering Committee; Chair of the Myeloma Committee, ECOG-ACRIN Cancer Research Group; Editor-in-Chief of Blood Cancer Journal; and Associate Editor of Leukemia, and the European Journal of Haematology. Dr. Rajkumar also served as principal investigator of several clinical trials for the treatment of myeloma, including pivotal trials that led to the regulatory approval of thalidomide for the treatment of the disease in the U.S. He has published more than 480 peer-reviewed papers primarily in the field of multiple myeloma and related plasma cell disorders.
Among Dr. Rajkumar’s accolades include the Jan Waldenstrom Lifetime Achievement Award (2021), the Mayo Clinic Distinguished Investigator Award (2018); and the Robert A. Kyle Lifetime Achievement Award (2016).