Plasma cells are what generate the mutation in multiple myeloma.
By: Maria Camila Sanchez
March 30, 2024
He multiple myeloma It is a disease that can return several times and affect different tissues of the human body. For this, it is essential that patients receive permanent medical treatment. In fact, in the United States, the risk of developing multiple myeloma over a lifetime is 1 in 132 (or 0.76%).
For this reason, in a patient meeting held by the Auxilio Mutuo Hospital and the Journal of Medicine and Public Health, Dr. Joel López, hematologist oncologist at the prestigious Puerto Rican hospital, spoke about the recurrence of multiple myeloma and the basics of this condition that still has no cure.
Diagnosis and abnormal M protein in multiple myeloma
As Dr. López explains, for the diagnosis of multiple myeloma There are clear criteria that allow for early detection. Even the first thing that must be taken into account to diagnose this type of cancer is to present an infiltration of the plasma cells monoclonal in more than 10% or that these cells are found in other parts of the bone.
Dr. López also explained that the multiple myeloma are those plasma cells that grow uncontrollably and become cancerous, producing a type of protein not normal (protein M), which accumulates in the body and can be discovered through specific tests or laboratories such as serum electrophoresis.
What is serum electrophoresis?
It is one of the tests that allows us to know if the patient has multiple myeloma or another disorder of plasma cells. This test measures the types of protein in the liquid part (serum) of a blood sample, analyzing the proteins in the blood and allowing us to know if they are normal or abnormal.
Other diagnostic criteria in multiple myeloma
Hypercalcemia: where the patient’s calcium is more than 11.
Kidney failure: where the patient has a creatinine of more than 2.
Anemia: with a hemoglobin less than 10.
Frequent or sporadic bone injuries, that is, fractures without a logical explanation.
“To say that the patient has symptoms or is symptomatic myeloma, they must have one of these criteria,” said the specialist.
The goal is long remission valleys and short relapses
According to Dr. López, “the multiple myeloma It is a condition that cannot be cured.” Despite this, the specialist explained that the doctors treating this condition want the valleys of remission to be maintained for as long as possible and for the peaks of relapses to last as little as possible.