How Multiple Myeloma Impacts the Body
Multiple myeloma affects the places where bone marrow is active in an adult. Most common sites include the bones of the spine, skull, pelvis, rib cage, and the areas around the shoulders and hips. Read more about its risk factors and how the disease impacts each of the following:
The Course of the Disease
When the disease is discovered, there is much to learn and be aware of:
Anyone can get cancer of the plasma cells. However, studies show that multiple myeloma can be more prevalent in persons of African descent. Age can also be a factor — 65-74 is the average age range for diagnosis, though persons of African American and Hispanic descent are usually diagnosed at an earlier age. Multiple myeloma is also more prevalent in men than in women.
*The reported cases of multiple myeloma worldwide may not fully represent all myeloma cases worldwide. Globally, myeloma may not be diagnosed or reported as often as it occurs. Source: Cowan, A. J., Allen, C., Barac, A., Basaleem, H., Bensenor, I., Curado, M. P., Foreman, K., Gupta, R., Harvey, J., Hosgood, H. D., Jakovljevic, M., Khader, Y., Linn, S., Lad, D., Mantovani, L., Nong, V. M., Mokdad, A., Naghavi, M., Postma, M., ... Fitzmaurice, C. (2022). The epidemiological landscape of multiple myeloma: a global cancer registry estimate of disease burden, risk factors, and temporal trends. The Lancet Haematology, 9(1), e41-e51. https://doi.org/10.1016/S2352-3026(21)00301-5
Myeloma is a cancer of the plasma cells in the bone marrow. The malignant plasma cells, or myeloma cells, accumulate in the bone marrow.
A solitary plasmacytoma is a localized tumor composed of plasma cells. It can grow inside bone, or intramedullary. It can also grow outside bone, or extramedullary or in the soft-tissue. Multiple myeloma occurs when there are multiple plasmacytomas inside or outside bone. When patients with myeloma have disease outside the bone marrow, this is called “extramedullary disease” (EMD).
Learn all of the terms that are frequently used when living with and being treated for multiple myeloma.
Resources & Support
Dr. Sigurdur Kristinsson gives the first results of the Iceland wide iStopMM study.