Specialty care availability could be improved by clinics run by advanced practitioners (APs), and ensuring patients understand potential side effects can help those with multiple myeloma continue taking bispecific antibody treatments effectively. This was the message conveyed by Beth Faiman, PhD, MSN, APN-BC, AOCN, BMTCN, FAAN, FAPO from the Cleveland Clinic Taussig Cancer Institute.
During an interview at the Patient-Centered Oncology Care® 2026 conference organized by The American Journal of Managed Care® in Nashville, Tennessee, held from September 24-25, 2026, Faiman covered topics including AP-led care models, the management of taste alterations associated with talquetamab, and strategies to prevent infections linked to bispecific antibodies.
Faiman noted that care pathways utilizing APs, such as nurse practitioners and physician assistants, differ greatly depending on the health system. These facilities often contend with institutional, scope-of-practice, and state-level obstacles.
Having directed a clinic for monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance since 2014, Faiman’s team has accumulated 12 years of experience improving access to care for patients requiring specialist intervention for unclear diagnoses. Nationwide, comparable AP-led anemia and thrombosis centers are in operation, and Faiman anticipates this approach will increase as the shortage of physicians remains a persistent issue.
So hopefully, this role will expand.”
The drug talquetamab functions as a GPRC5D×CD3 bispecific antibody and presents a distinct safety profile because the protein GPRC5D appears on keratinized cells, resulting in oral, skin, and nail toxicity.
She is part of the TALISMAN (NCT06500884) trial, which recently released data at the International Myeloma Society meeting in Scotland. The investigation centered on taste changes caused by talquetamab. While patients often lose sweet and salty tastes rapidly, they tend to acquire brothy and umami tastes, which offers guidance for dietary choices. Over time, taste sensitivity typically returns, with many individuals recovering it by the 3-month mark.
For patients undergoing bispecific antibody therapy, infection risk is a primary concern. The latest National Cancer Network guidelines for multiple myeloma emphasize the necessity of starting intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG), antibiotics, and antiviral prophylaxis immediately upon treatment initiation. Although the guidelines phrase the recommendation as “may start,” Faiman argues that prophylaxis is mandatory for all patients on these therapies.