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What Is M Protein (Myeloma Protein)?

Multiple Myeloma Diagnostic Criteria
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What is M Protein or myeloma protein? When your doctor is running various diagnostic tests looking for evidence of the blood cancer called multiple myeloma, he/she will sample your blood, urine and run imaging tests such as x-ray, MRI, CT or PET scans.

Because the blood cancer called multiple myeloma can be difficult to detect and complicated to understand,  many tests are performed to determine:

  1. the presence of multiple myeloma
  2. how advanced the MM is (pre-myeloma or stage 1,2,3)
  3. possible end-organ damage to the bone, kidney, or blood

Determining if a person has an m-spike is one of the key determinants in trying to identify 1,2,3 above. As you can read from the article linked below, the patient’s “m-spike” can

  • determine the type of MM (IgG, kappa for example)
  • how advanced or how much MM there is in the patient’s bone marrow and
  • if the monoclonal proteins are causing end-organ damage to the patient’s bones, kidneys and/or
  • blood.


When I was going through active treatment for my MM, it seemed like I was being pricked, stuck, and imaged, constantly. Newly diagnosed MM patients are often tested monthly in an effort to gauge the patient’s MM, if and how fast the MM is growing, and if it is causing any damage to the patient.

All to say that while diagnostic testing can be a pain, it is essential to manage the patient’s MM for ever. As you can see, a MM patient’s M-spike can be an important indicator.

If you are a newly diagnosed MM patient and you have any questions about either/or/both conventional or non-conventional treatment, email me at David.PeopleBeatingCancer@gmail.com

Hang in there,

David Emerson

  • Myeloma Survivor
  • Myeloma Cancer Coach
  • Director PeopleBeatingCancer

What Is M Protein (Myeloma Protein)?

“To check if you have a cancer called multiple myeloma, your doctor may ask you to get a test for M protein. If the substance shows up in your blood or urine, it’s a sign you might have that disease or another condition.

M proteins go by a lot of different names. You may hear your doctor call them

  • “monoclonal ” proteins
  • monoclonal immunoglobulin,
  • M spike,
  • or paraprotein.

To fend off sickness, plasma cells release proteins called antibodies. Thy find and kill viruses, bacteria, and other substances. But sometimes, plasma cells make abnormal proteins, which are the ones called M proteins. These are antibodies or incomplete antibodies that are all exactly the same, which is called monoclonal. These M proteins don’t have any power to fight infection…

A variety of conditions are related to M proteins:

MGUS (monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance). If you have this condition, you have both healthy plasma cells and abnormal ones.

Smoldering multiple myeloma. This is the stage between MGUS and myeloma. There are more abnormal plasma cells and M proteins in the blood.

Multiple myeloma. When plasma cells are cancerous and grow out of control, it’s called multiple myeloma. These cancer cells build up in the bone marrow and crowd out healthy cells. They also make M proteins. Higher levels of M protein in the blood can lead to complications.

Waldenstrom’s macroglobulinemia. This cancer affects small lymphocytes (white blood cells). In this blood cancer, plasma cells produce a particular type of sticky M protein called IgM monoclonal antibody.

A lot of the time, M proteins don’t cause any problems. You may not realize that you have them in your body. But as the abnormal or cancerous plasma cells spread, they may crowd out healthy blood cells. This can lead to complications, such as:

  • Anemia. Symptoms of anemia like shortness of breath is one of the more common presentations cause the BM is so crowded with abnormal plasma cells that red blood cells are crowded out. So are platelets that are formed in the bone marrow, so bruising is common.
  • Infections. When plasma cells make more M proteins, there are fewer functional antibodies to fight infections.
  • Peripheral neuropathy. M proteins can affect how well your nerves work. You can get numbness, tingling, or burning in your hands, feet, or lower legs.
  • Bone loss or damage. Bones are weakened by dysfunctional plasma cells, both cause of decreased bone density (bone loss) and because of actual collections of cancer cells in the bone. You can suffer from bone fractures from minimal activity (like a sneeze). This is called a pathologic fracture.
  • Kidney problems. Your kidneys have to work overtime to filter out the M proteins and calcium in your blood. Your kidneys might not work as well as they should, or you might even have kidney failure.
  • Serum and urine protein electrophoresis (SPEP and UPEP).
  • Immunofixation electrophoresis (IFE) of blood or urine.
  • Serum free light chain assay.

 

 

 

 

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