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Jan 17, 2022 · The best way to see if your bone marrow is healthy and producing normal blood cells is to examine a sample of tissue under the microscope. Your doctor may also request a bone marrow examination if you have symptoms that can be caused by a bone marrow disease or if there is an unexplained change seen in your blood cells.
Bone marrow tests check to see if your bone marrow is working correctly and making normal amounts of blood cells. The tests can help diagnose and monitor various bone marrow disorders , blood disorders , and certain types of cancer .
Understanding your blood and bone marrow test results. Edward Libby M.D. Associate Professor of Medicine, Medical Oncology Director, Multiple Myeloma Service Seattle, Washington. Lets be honest....what comes out of your doctors mouth in the office is often confusing gibberish.
May 9, 2024 · Bone marrow examination is a crucial diagnostic procedure used to evaluate various medical conditions and provide valuable insights into a patient's health. By analyzing the cells and components within the bone marrow, doctors can gather essential information about blood disorders, cancers, infections, and other systemic diseases.
- What you will learn from this booklet
- ¡ Diagnose monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance (MGUS), smoldering multiple myeloma (SMM),
- ¡ Bone marrow tests.
- Other variables
- Interpreting and comparing test results
- MGUS and SMM
- Complete blood count (CBC)
- 3.5–10.5 x 109/L
- 1.7–7.0 x 109/L
- 150–450 x 109/L
- Chemistry profile
- 7–20 mg/dL
- 0.6–1.3 mg/dL
- 9–10.5 mg/dL
- 6–8 g/dL
- non-secretory myeloma).
- Looking forward: a highly sensitive method to measure myeloma protein in the blood
- Bone marrow tests
- Immunohistochemistry and flow cytometry of bone marrow plasma cells
- FISH
- CT or CAT scan (computed [axial] tomography)
- PET (positron emission tomography) scan and PET/CT
- Bone densitometry
The IMF’s Understanding series of booklets is designed to acquaint you with treat ments and supportive care measures for multiple myeloma (which we refer to simply as “myeloma”). Words in bold+blue type are explained in the “Terms and definitions” section at the end of this booklet, as well as in a more complete compen dium of myeloma-related vocab...
and active multiple myeloma (MM). ¡ Assess the risk of progression of MGUS or SMM to active myeloma. ¡ Assess the stage of your myeloma. ¡ Assess your genetic risk factors. ¡ Evaluate response to treatment. ¡ Monitor remission periods and determine when to start treatment again. ¡ Monitor for disease-related and treatment-related side efects...
¡ Imaging studies. Other tests are used in special circumstances, such as in diagnos-ing and/or monitoring amyloidosis, neuropathy, and kidney or infectious complications. These tests are beyond the scope of this booklet and are not included. Myeloma patients require many tests in the course of their diagnosis and treatment. Some of these tests ma...
Be aware that your lab results can be afected by many variables, including: ¡ Other medications and supplements that you may be taking. ¡ The amount and type of fluids you have consumed. ¡ Whether or not you have eaten prior to the test. ¡ Consult with your doctor to make sure there are no special instructions about medications, supplements, fo...
Patient-to-patient diferences DO NOT COMPARE YOUR LAB RESULTS TO THOSE OF OTHER PATIENTS. For example, one patient’s test result might confirm stable remission, while another patient with the same test result might have active disease. Each patient’s myeloma is unique. Changes over time Myeloma is a cancer that evolves biologically, so a test that...
If you have been diagnosed with MGUS or SMM, the range of tests will depend upon your risk status. The IMF’s Understanding MGUS and Smoldering Multiple Myeloma booklet includes a discussion of the appropriate tests used in the diagnostic workup of these precursors to active myeloma.
The CBC is one of the main tests needed for diagnosing and monitoring myeloma patients. Many cases of myeloma (and its asymptomatic predecessors, MGUS and SMM) are identified as the result of blood tests routinely ordered as part of an annual medical exam, such as the CBC. The CBC is a blood test that quantifies all the cells that make up the solid...
White blood cells make up the body’s immune system. They fight foreign substances that enter the body, including bacteria, viruses, and toxins. Low WBC counts can result from many types of treatment for myeloma, which can further diminish your ability to fight disease. Your WBC count will be followed carefully during your treatment for myeloma. Tab...
Neutrophils are a type of WBC that helps fight infections, particularly those caused by bacteria and fungi. A low neutrophil count is called neutropenia, a condition that results in susceptibility to infection. Your doctor will check your neutrophil count, sometimes expressed as ANC (Absolute Neutrophil Count, which measures both mature and immatur...
Platelets are blood cells that help the blood clot and prevent bleeding. Although low hemoglobin is a more common blood-related symp-tom of myeloma than is a low platelet count (thrombocytopenia), some patients do have low platelets at diagnosis as a result of their myeloma. In addition, certain treatments for myeloma, in particular the proteasome ...
The comprehensive metabolic panel (CMP), a key test in the diagnosis and monitoring of myeloma, is given to measure various substances in the blood. Along with the CBC, it is part of a routine physical exam. Below are the individual tests from this panel that are recommended for myeloma patients by both the IMWG and the NCCN.
This test provides information about how well your liver and kidneys are functioning.
This test is used to assess the “R” in the CRAB criteria – Renal (kidney) function. Creatinine is a waste product from the normal breakdown of muscle tissue. It is filtered through the kidneys and excreted in urine. Measurement of serum creatinine level is a useful indicator of how well your kidneys are functioning. Kidney function can be seriously...
This test is used to assess the “C” in the CRAB criteria – elevated Calcium in the blood. Calcium is stored in the bones and is released as part of normal bone remodeling (the body constantly breaks down and rebuilds bone). Myeloma grows in the bone marrow, where it changes the environment inside the marrow and causes a cascade of cellular events t...
Total protein measures the total amount of blood protein, including both albumin (the most plentiful protein in the blood) and globulin. If M-protein is present in the blood, it will increase the amount of blood globulin, causing the amount of total blood protein to rise. At diagnosis, an elevated total protein should prompt a doctor to order addit...
SPEP separates and quantifies proteins based on their electrical charge, size, and shape. As you learned above, the two types of protein in serum are albumin and globulin. Although there is only one type of albumin, there are sub-types of globulin, usually appearing on SPEP as alpha-1, alpha-2, beta-1, beta-2, and gamma globulins. Immunoglobulin pr...
A highly sensitive new method to quantify myeloma protein is mass spectrometry, which is being tested and validated at Mayo Clinic’s Special Protein Laboratory in Rochester, MN. Mass spectrometry is able to detect MGUS, SMM, and myeloma consistently at much lower levels than than SPEP and IFE. While your doctor can currently send your blood sample ...
Since myeloma grows in the bone marrow, the only way to examine myeloma cells and to assess their properties – how many there are, what they look like as compared to normal plasma cells, what their cellular genetics are, how rapidly they’re reproducing, which antibodies they express, if there are any myeloma cells left when a patient is in complete...
Immunohistochemistry (IHC), also called immunophenotyping, is an important tool for diagnosis and prognosis in myeloma and other hematologic malignancies. IHC is the process of detecting antigens in tissue samples by introducing antibodies that bind to them. IHC is one of the tests used to determine stringent complete response (sCR) to therapy as d...
Fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) is a newer test than standard cytogenetics, and is also used to assess genetic risk based on chromosomal abnormalities. FISH is not a substitute for karyotyping but is complementary to it. FISH is the assessment of the chromosomes of all myeloma cells in a bone marrow sample. FISH allows detection of change...
CT is a radiological study that uses X-ray technology to create a cross-sectional, three-dimensional image of the inside of the body. It is a more precise study than X-ray and can provide clear, detailed images of bone. Dedicated low-dose (of radiation) whole-body CT protocols have been developed for imaging the bones of the skeleton. Whole-body lo...
PET scanning is a “real-time” study that shows where, and to what extent, cancer cells are actively dividing in the body. Before a PET scan, a patient is injected with a sugar-fluorine compound (FDG, or fluorodeoxyglucose) that is taken up by the body’s actively mul-tiplying cells as fuel for cell division. When the body is scanned, the areas with ...
Bone density testing is useful for monitoring the efects of bisphosphonate therapy on the bones of patients who have difuse thinning (osteopenia or the more severe condition, osteoporosis) of the outer bone cortex. It is not a useful test in assessing myeloma bone disease. Another bone-related test that is not useful for myeloma patients is the nuc...
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Mar 3, 2024 · A comprehensive laboratory bone marrow examination includes a complete blood count (CBC) and analysis of the peripheral blood smear (PBS), bone marrow aspirate, core biopsy specimen, clot section, and cytometric flow.
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Bone marrow tests check to see if your bone marrow is working correctly and making normal amounts of blood cells. The tests can help diagnose and monitor bone marrow disorders , blood disorders , and certain types of cancer .
