Clinical significance of serum beta-2 microglobulin levels in hematological malignancies.

Abstract

The clinical significance of serum beta-2 microglobulin (Sβ2M) levels in hematological malignancies and of the ratio of measured β2M value to calculated β2M (β2M M/CTD ratio) from the serum creatinine level for assessing renal function were examined. The levels of Sβ2M in patients with multiple myeloma (MM), polycythemia vera (PV), and renal failure were markedly increased. The β2M M/CTD ratio was increased in MM and PV patients, but was not increased in renal failure patients, suggesting that the β2M M/CTD ratio is useful for distinguishing between MM and renal failure.In the MM group, the mean Sβ2M level did not significantly differ between the patients who received chemotherapy with/without interferon and those who were not treated. However, the mean β2M M/CTD ratio of the chemotherapy plus interferon-alpha group was significantly higher than that of the non-treated group (p <0.01) and that of the chemotherapy-only group (p < 0.02). In the group with chronic myelogenous leukemia, both the mean Sβ2M level and the mean β2M M/CTD ratio were significantly different in the non-treated patients compared with the interferon therapy patients (p <0.02, p <0.05).We speculate that the evaluation of prognosis and tumor mass by the level of Sβ2M should be performed at the time of diagnosis, before the administration of chemotherapy with interferon.