This group of medicines blocks a chemical called proteasome. Proteasome helps to break down proteins. This is important in lymphoma cells because they produce more proteins than healthy cells. By blocking the proteasome, the cells that cause WM get ‘overloaded’, meaning they can’t work properly and die.
There are currently no proteasome inhibitors available to people with WM on the NHS, but you may hear of the following medicines, which are being studied both in the UK and abroad to see how well they treat people with WM:
- Bortezomib – commonly used in other blood cancers and is given most commonly as a weekly injection under the skin. It is usually well tolerated but can cause a neuropathy, diarrhoea or nausea
- Carfilzomib
- Ixazomib
