Multiple Myeloma Blood Test Results Explained
Multiple myeloma blood test results explained – Multiple myeloma is cancer that affects plasma cells, a very important component of the immune system. In particular, plasma cells are the result of the maturation of B lymphocytes, which, together with T lymphocytes, representing the two main types involved in the cellular immune response. The role of plasma cells, which are found mainly in the bone marrow, is to produce and release antibodies to fight infection, but in some cases the result of their growth in ways that are not controlled by giving cancer originated.
Multiple Myeloma Blood Test Type: (1) Myeloma is a change of the plasma but can occur in some form. (2) Multiple Myeloma: the most often. Plasma tumor cells are predominantly local in the bone marrow and produce complete monoclonal antibodies are found in large numbers in the patient’s serum. (3) Plasma cell myeloma micromolecule: only produce parts that became known as the chain lightly. (4) Non-secretors plasma-cell myeloma: do not produce immunoglobulin, but are present in excessive amounts. (5) Solitary plasmacytoma: cancer has one location in bone or extramedullary level. (6) Plasma cell leukemia: plasma cells are also present in large amounts in the blood. (7) Lazy myeloma: this disease without symptoms and no cuts on the bone or other organs.
Blood test for multiple myeloma – After the diagnosis is needed to determine the stage of myeloma, which according to You also get an indication on the prognosis of the disease.The traditional method to assign one stage to the myeloma based on Durie-Salmon, which identifies three stages by considering four factors: the amount of immunoglobulin in the blood or urine, the amount of calcium in the blood, the amount of hemoglobin in the blood and the severity of bone damage (evaluated with X-rays). This system, however, is becoming more and more accurate because they introduce diagnostic techniques.
A staging system that is more modern is system international staging of multiple myeloma, to determine the three stages of myeloma is mainly based on the levels of albumin and beta-2-microglobulin in the blood, and kidney function, measurement of platelet count and the age of the patient. In some cases, the tumor recurs after treatment: this is known as myeloma recurrent, may occur again in the bones or other parts of the body. It is ultimately defined myeloma indolent cancer that does not present an active and fast-growing, so as not to cause damage to the bones or other organs. Because the characteristics of the disease, patients with myeloma are lazy is generally not subject to the real treatment but only with careful observation.
What Are The Symptoms of Multiple Myeloma? Although some patients with multiple myeloma do not show signs, there are usually signs that indicate the presence of disease. The first of these signals is undoubtedly the bone pain which is localized mainly at the level of the back, hips, and chest. Associated with pain there is often a greater fragility of the bone that You can break even after minor trauma. The pain may also be of the type of nerve (e.g., sciatica) due to nerve crush on the part of the vertebral bone.
The presence of anemia resulting in fatigue, weakness, and shortness of breath is associated with a decrease in the number of red blood cells caused by myeloma. Decrease in the number of white blood cells (leukopenia) and platelets (thrombocytopenia) occur not with a lower resistance to infection and bleeding problems serious, even after trivial cuts (platelets actually important to the process of coagulation). The leukopenia and thrombocytopenia, however, is rare.
Patients with myeloma may also have kidney failure or high blood calcium levels because of the invasion of bone by malignant cells resulting in the release of calcium. The latter affects the function of nerves and, consequently, high levels can cause weakness and mental confusion.
Definitive Diagnosis of Multiple Myeloma
Does multiple myeloma show up in blood tests – Early Diagnosis of multiple myeloma can be difficult because many patients have no symptoms at an advanced stage or have the common symptoms such as fatigue and back pain. Blood and urine tests give the first indication of the presence of cancer cells plasma: in the case of the disease found in the level of fact an increase of immunoglobulins using laboratory techniques call serum protein electrophoresis and urine.
In addition to this technique, the parameters of the other blood may be important to determine the presence of myeloma even if they are not important for the diagnosis. In particular, the level of hemoglobin and platelets are low in the event of illness, how a low level of serum albumin if the cancer is at an advanced stage. Even high levels of Beta-2 microglobulin and serum calcium showed that myeloma has reached an advanced stage.
A bone marrow biopsy, a fundamental tool for the diagnosis of myeloma, consists in sampling and subsequent analysis of the bone fragments and marrow contained in them. the marrow is aspirated with a syringe (bone marrow aspiration) and analyzed to look for cancer cells. To complement and optimize the diagnosis of myeloma is also used diagnostic imaging technique such as X-ray, CT, MRI, and PET.
How: Chemotherapy is one treatment used in cases of multiple myeloma. Drugs that can be administered orally or by intravenous or intramuscular injection, reached through the flow of blood throughout the body. It is usually seen as the limit of traditional chemotherapy, because with this methodology also damage the areas of healthy, but actually is an advantage in the case of multiple myeloma often extends in various districts of the body.
There are many drugs that are used, either alone or in combination, for the treatment of multiple myeloma (melphalan, prednisone, cyclophosphamide, vincristine, doxorubicin, etc.): the choice depends on several factors that only a doctor can accurately assess, such as for example the stage of the disease or kidney function. Recently launched in the treatment of new drugs of myeloma such as thalidomide, the drug retired last year from the market because of serious side effects on the unborn child if taken during pregnancy, but it is effective in the treatment of this cancer, bortezomib, lenalidomide, and pomalidomide.
To fight the damage caused by the bone tissue myeloma, which generally becomes weak and prone to fractures, they used a drug called bisphosphonates, which can slow the bone damage. Although radiation therapy can be used in the treatment of multiple myeloma, while surgery is reserved for removal of solitary plasmacytoma or for the case of compression of the spine that causes paralysis or weakness excessive.
The discovery of the presence in the bone marrow from stem cells are now known to pose a new cable, has made a great contribution to the treatment of multiple myeloma. In fact, for treating patients with high-dose chemotherapy, is necessary to eliminate the cancer cells, it is necessary to reconstitute the lymphatic system of the patient who is also severely damaged. This can be done through the transplant of stem cells from the lymphatic system which is inserted into the patient 24 hours after chemotherapy. It is actually a practice now common to remove the stem cells or the patient’s own blood or bone marrow from external donors and use it to transplant a real person who is sick: in the first case it is called autologous (or transplantation), whereas in the case of both allogeneic (or allograft).
Procedure in which stem cells removed from the blood is called leukapheresis and allow to collect a sufficient number of cells for one or more transplant. Often the actual high-dose chemotherapy should be repeated and then the patient must undergo a second transplant within a few months of the first. In the case of an autologous transplant is the risk that the disease will recur is quite high, while in the case of a drop in the risk of an allograft. Of to the salt of death with the technique of the latter to a value between 10% and 30% (because of the phenomenon of denial), much higher than the 1-2% which is noted in the case of autograft.
For many years the procedure of allograft has been refined to reduce side effects. Among the types of allogeneic less toxic for the body, there is a transplant with a reduced intensity which consists of the administration of the reduced drug in the early stages of treatment and transplant non-myeloablative (mini-allograft), which only provides a little dose of radiotherapy to promote engraftment of the donor cells.
Who is at risk: The cause of multiple myeloma is not yet fully known although recent studies suggest the presence of abnormalities in chromosome structure and in some specific gene in patients with the disease. Age is a major risk factor for multiple myeloma: more than two-thirds of the fact myeloma is diagnosed to people over the age of 65 and only 1% of people under the age of 40. In addition, the risk of developing this cancer is higher in men than women.
Exposure to radioactivity and familiarity, or the presence in the family other people with the same disease, can be risk factors, but this is a condition that affects a very small number of cases. Situations of a particular risk is that of gammopathy monoclonal. This is a disease that causes excessive production of immunoglobulins by plasma cells of the bone marrow. The gammopathy refers to the fact that, with the electrophoresis test is called, this antibody forms a peak at a certain point of the track which is called “region gamma.”
The word “monoclonal” does not show that they are all produced by a single clone of plasma cells and that they are equal to each other (normal immunoglobulin, however, is polyclonal). You do not know the cause of this disease that mainly affects people over the age of 50. Some research claims that it is a manifestation of the immune system aging.
Multiple myeloma blood test results explained – The most common form is gammopathy monoclonal significance undetermined, also known by the acronym MGUS (Gammopathy Monoclonal Significance Undetermined). The term “uncertainty” refers precisely to the nature of the precancerous disease, because it is not always easy to distinguish, according to the test, if it is still in the stage of benign or malignancy early. The MGUS do not require any therapy, but only the careful supervision of, to seize any signal evolution for the former multiple myeloma. It is good to know that about 25% of MGUS to myeloma develops within 10 years of diagnosis.
How wide: Myeloma is cancer which is typical for advanced age and the prevalence remained fairly stable over time, while mortality decreased slightly. This disease is slightly more common in men than in women in our country that the average is diagnosed every year to 9.8 new cases per 100,000 males and 7.6 new cases per 100,000 women. In Italy estimates, relative to the year of 2015, talks about 2,400 new cases of myeloma each year between the women and 2,900 in between humans. They are sick of this cancer during their life around one woman of 151 and a man of 106.
Prevention: You can’t build a prevention strategy specific for multiple myeloma because there is no recognized risk factors such as safe responsible for the outbreak. Of course, it is good practice to control weight and avoid exposure to carcinogenic substances that may increase the risk. Even people suffering from other diseases of the plasma cells, as MGUS or solitary plasmacytoma, can’t apply preventive measures to prevent the disease can develop and increase to myeloma, if not careful to schedule inspection.