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March is Multiple Myeloma Awareness Month
Multiple myeloma, sometimes simply called myeloma, is a blood cancer that affects thousands of people each year.
Here’s what you need to know about multiple myeloma, what it is, how it’s controlled, and what steps you can take to get an early diagnosis so you can start treatment as soon as possible.
What is multiple myeloma?
Multiple myeloma is a rare type of cancer that begins in serum cells, a type of white blood cell. Serum cells produce antibodies that are useful in fighting infections. They are located in the bone marrow, the soft inner part of your bones where your body produces blood cells.
How does multiple myeloma develop?
When serum cells become abnormal or cancerous, they multiply rapidly and crowd out healthy serum cells. Instead of doing their normal job of making antibodies to protect you from germs, cancer cells start producing an abnormal antibody called a monoclonal protein (M protein).
What are the risk factors for multiple myeloma?
There is no clear reason why some people develop multiple myeloma and others do not. However, certain factors can increase the risk of developing this disorder.
Risk factors for multiple myeloma include:
- Be over 65 years old
- To be black
- Family history of multiple myeloma
- Living overweight or obese
- Have another serum cell disorder
- Exposure to radiation and some chemicals such as pesticides or fertilizers
What are the symptoms of multiple myeloma?
Multiple myeloma may not cause any symptoms. However, if this is the case, you may experience the following symptoms:
- Pain in your bones, especially in your back and ribs
- Broken bones or fractures
- Feel tired or exhausted
- Weight loss that cannot be explained
- Frequent fever and infections
- I feel thirsty all the time
- Frequent urination
What medical complications could multiple myeloma cause?
Multiple myeloma can cause other medical disorders including:
- Frequent infections
- Bone problems, including pain, fractures and reduced bone mass
- Kidney problems, including kidney failure, when your kidneys cannot properly remove waste from the body
- Anemia or low red blood cell concentration
- High levels of calcium in the blood, known as hypercalcemia
How is multiple myeloma diagnosed?
If your doctor (HCP) thinks you have multiple myeloma or if you have symptoms, a test will be done to confirm the diagnosis. If you don’t have symptoms, tests for other diseases may detect multiple myeloma.
- Blood and urine tests They can detect M proteins. A blood test can also identify other proteins made by myeloma cells, such as β2-microglobulin. Other blood tests may include complete blood tests to assess your kidney function and your calcium and uric acid levels.
- Imaging tests For example, X-ray, CT, MRI, and positron emission tomography (PET) scans could be used to detect bone problems.
- A bone marrow biopsy is a test in which your doctor inserts a syringe into your bone marrow cavity, usually in your hip, to remove tissue for testing. This tissue is analyzed under a microscope to look for myeloma cells.
Your doctor may also use the CRAB criteria to diagnose myeloma. The acronym CRAB refers to:
- High level of Calcio
- problems REnale (the kidneys)
- APretty
- Bone injuries (bone, in English)
If M proteins are detected in your blood without any other symptoms, you may be diagnosed with a condition that is a precursor to multiple myeloma.
The two precursors are early-stage myelomas and include:
- Monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance (MGUS): It is considered noncancerous or benign and does not require treatment. About 1% of people with MGUS develop active myeloma over time.
- Asymptomatic multiple myeloma (SMM): It is considered precancerous and if treatment is required, it will likely be in a clinical trial. About 1 in 10 people with asymptomatic multiple myeloma will develop myeloma.
When active myeloma is identified, it is classified into stages 1 and 3. Stage 1 myeloma spreads slowly, while stage 3 myeloma spreads faster and is more aggressive. Determining the stage is helpful for your doctor to determine the best treatment plan for you.
What treatment options are there for multiple myeloma?
Treatments for multiple myeloma may include:
- Targeted chemotherapy that attacks specifically on cancer cells
- Immunotherapy that your body’s immune system uses to attack cancer cells
- Stem cell transplants that replace cancerous bone marrow with healthy bone marrow
- Treatment with CAR-T lymphocytesa type of immunotherapy that uses T lymphocytes from your blood to fight cancer
- Corticosteroids destroy and specifically attack myeloma cells
- radiation causing the mass of myeloma cells to shrink rapidly
There is no cure for multiple myeloma, but it can be controlled with treatments. Multiple myeloma has a five-year survival rate of about 62%. This means that about 6 in 10 people with myeloma are still alive five years after the initial diagnosis.
By participating in clinical trials, new treatment methods for myeloma can be discovered. Talk to your doctor about your options and check out the National Cancer Institute’s list of active multiple myeloma clinical trials.
This educational resource was created with the support of an educational grant from Johnson & Johnson.
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