Larry Anderson, M.D., Ph.D.

Meet Dr. Anderson

Bone Marrow Transplant Specialist

Just a decade ago, patients diagnosed with multiple myeloma were expected to survive only a few years.

The good news is that today’s sophisticated therapies – delivered by experts like Larry Anderson Jr., M.D., Ph.D., at UT Southwestern Medical Center ­– are helping people with incurable bone marrow cancers like myeloma lead better, longer lives than ever before.

"We provide individualized treatments that consider each patient’s unique circumstances."

Dr. Anderson specializes in plasma cell cancers and bone marrow transplantation. The only oncologist in North Texas to exclusively treat plasma cell cancers, he sees about 90 percent of the myeloma patients who come to UT Southwestern.

He also cares for patients with similar diseases, including Waldenström's macroglobulinemia and amyloidosis.

“I like being able to provide treatments that extend people’s lives and give them a better quality of life, while also working to advance the field by participating in clinical trials that help to develop new treatments,” Dr. Anderson says.

With the current treatments for myeloma, experts estimate the average survival is now eight to 10 years, Dr. Anderson explains. And the latest FDA-approved treatments are more effective and more manageable than traditional chemotherapy.

“It’s been very rewarding to witness the dramatically improved outcomes in my patients over the past several years as new therapies have become available,” Dr. Anderson says.

In addition to offering patients the most innovative therapies and a range of clinical trials for plasma cell disorders, UT Southwestern delivers comprehensive, highly specialized care.

“Having a doctor who sees patients with conditions like theirs exclusively – from their first visit and diagnosis through transplant and long-term follow up – can be a big advantage over seeing a general oncologist who may have only a few myeloma patients,” Dr. Anderson says.  

Dr. Anderson is also happy to see plasma cell disorder patients for second opinions to help with guiding treatment decisions, getting them on new therapies on clinical trials, or just for their stem cell transplant process, after which they can return to their referring oncologist if they like.

A number of promising new treatments for plasma cell cancers are currently in clinical trials, Dr. Anderson notes, and UT Southwestern hopes to continue adding more to the list.

"We do the best we can to give patients high-quality lives that are as long as possible,” he says.