Multiple Myeloma

Recently, a working-model of a stepwise malignant transformation in the molecular pathogenesis of multiple myeloma (MM) was proposed, involving the tumor suppressor gene TP53 and retinoblastoma gene (RB1) as prominent components of cell cycle control. To further define the role of TP53 and RB1 in disease progression, we retrospectively analyzed by fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) cytological material from 16 patients who underwent sequential bone marrow biopsies during the course of their disease. For TP53, no deletions were detected at presentation or during follow-up. It is possible that the patients reported here represent a subset with relatively long survival, and therefore did not demonstrate the TP53 deletions that had been reported in patients with a very poor prognosis. For RB1, monoallelic deletion was demonstrated in nine patients. In each case, the deletion appeared already in the first biopsy analyzed. The presence of a deletion did not affect the rate of tumor progression or the length of follow-up, and thus prognosis. Monoallelic deletions of RB1 appear to be a frequent and early event in the pathogenesis of MM, without obvious relevance for disease progression.