Perturbation of the gut microbiome and association with outcomes following autologous stem cell transplantation in patients with multiple myeloma

The gut microbiome is an important feature of host immunity with associations to hematologic malignancies and cellular therapy. We evaluated the gut microbiome and dietary intake in patients with multiple myeloma undergoing autologous stem cell transplantation. Thirty patients were enrolled, and samples were collected at four timepoints: pre-transplant, engraftment, day +100 (D + 100), and 9-12 months post-transplant. Microbiome analysis demonstrated a loss of alpha diversity at the engraftment timepoint driven by decreases in Blautia, Ruminococcus, and Faecalibacterium genera and related to intravenous antibiotic exposure. Higher fiber intake was associated with increased relative abundance of Blautia at the pre-transplant timepoint. Lower alpha diversity at engraftment was associated with a partial response to therapy compared with complete response (CR) or very good partial response (VGPR) (CR/VGPR vs. PR, p < 0.05). We conclude that loss of bacterial diversity at engraftment may be associated with impaired response to stem cell transplantation in multiple myeloma.