Risk factors for oral mucositis (OM) in multiple myeloma (MM) patients receiving high-dose melphalan (Mel) prior to autologous stem cell transplantation (SCT)

e19565 Background: OM is a common complication of high-dose melphalan in MM patients (pts). Proposed risk factors for OM in SCT include: low albumin and high serum creatinine (Cr) levels, both were evaluated in MM patients undergoing Mel/ASCT. (Grazziutti, ML, Bone Marrow Transplant 2006). Methods: This is a single center retrospective chart review of 214 sequentially treated MM pts who received Mel 200mg/m2 conditioning prior to SCT between January 2005-September 2011. Data collected included: demographics, Hgb, Cr, C-reactive protein and albumin on the day of SCT, length of hospital stay. OM assessment was graded as follows: Grade 1, no OM; Grade 2, mild OM; the pts maintained adequate oral intake; Grade 3, decreased oral intake and/or use of oral narcotics; Grade 4, severe OM needing intravenous narcotics. Results: The table below describes pt characteristics grouped by OM grade. Overall, 56 pts (27%) had grade 3/4 OM. Multivariate analysis of variance revealed no statistically significant correlation between OM grade and Hgb, Cr, albumin, CRP; the overall test’s p value = 0.55. There were no racial or gender differences with regard to grade of mucositis, the p-values range are 0.75 and 0.31, respectively (likelihood ratio chi-square test). Most interestingly, OM did not impact length of hospital stay. Conclusions: We did not establish any predictive risk factors for OM as previously described. Analysis of the impact of OM on MM response and event and overall survival will be presented. Studies of Mel pharmacogenetics may provide insight to patients' predisposition to OM. [Table: see text]