Amyloidosis: Diagnosis and management

Research output: Contribution to journalReview articlepeer-review

61 Scopus citations

Abstract

Amyloidosis is a rare plasma cell proliferative disorder. The annual incidence in Olmsted County, Minnesota, is 8 in 1,000,000 patients. This is a difficult disorder to diagnose, because the symptoms at presentation are vague and include dyspnea, paresthesias, edema, weight loss, and fatigue. The clinical syndromes at the time of presentation include nephrotic-range proteinuria with or without renal failure, cardiomyopathy, "atypical multiple myeloma," hepatomegaly, and autonomic or peripheral neuropathy. The serum immunoglobulin free light chain assay has been an important step forward in classifying systemic amyloidosis as an immunoglobulin light chain form and in monitoring therapy. Recently, the importance of serum cardiac biomarkers in assessing outcome has been recognized. New therapies developed over the past 5 years include high-dose chemotherapy with stem cell reconstitution, combinations of alkylating agents with dexamethasone, and, most recently, thalidomide.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)208-219
Number of pages12
JournalClinical Lymphoma and Myeloma
Volume6
Issue number3
DOIs
StatePublished - Nov 2005

Keywords

  • Amyloid
  • Monoclonal gammopathy
  • Multiple myeloma
  • Stem cell transplantaion

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Hematology
  • Oncology
  • Cancer Research

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Amyloidosis: Diagnosis and management'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this