METHODS: The APAC MRDR was established in 2018 as a multicentre collaboration across the Asia-Pacific, collecting prospective data on patients newly diagnosed with MM, MGUS, PCL and plasmacytoma in Korea, Singapore, Malaysia and Taiwan, with China recently joining. Development of the registry required a multidisciplinary team of clinicians, researchers, legal and information technology support, and financial resources, as well as local clinical context from key opinion leaders in the APAC region. Written informed consent is obtained and data are routinely collected throughout treatment by hospital staff. Data are stored securely, meeting all local privacy and ethics requirements. Data were collected from October 2018 to March 2024.
RESULTS: Over 1700 patients from 24 hospitals have been enrolled onto the APAC MRDR to date, with the majority (86%) being newly diagnosed with MM. Bortezomib with an immunomodulatory drug was most frequently used in first-line MM therapy, and lenalidomide-based therapy was most common in second-line. Establishment and implementation challenges include regulatory and a range of operational issues.
CONCLUSION: The APAC MRDR is providing 'real-world' data to participating sites, clinicians and policy-makers to explore factors influencing outcomes and survival, and to support high quality studies. It is already a valuable resource that will continue to grow and support research and clinical collaboration in MM and related diseases across the APAC region.