Molecular aspects of multiple myeloma

Multiple myeloma is a malignant tumour of plasma cells with a median survival of two to three years. Karyotypic instability is seen at the earliest stage of the disease and increases with disease progression, leading to extreme genetic abnormalities similar to solid tumours. Translocations involving the immunoglobulin heavy chain region on chromosome 14q32 are clearly important in the pathogenesis of most myelomas. This review focuses on the different genetic abnormalities found in myeloma and discusses possible pathogenetic mechanisms and the implications for biologically based treatments.