Immunophenotypic Characteristics and Prognostic Value of Peripheral Blood Circulating Plasma Cells in Patients with Newly Diagnosed Multiple Myeloma
Abstract
Objective: To investigate the immunophenotypic characteristics and prognostic value of peripheral blood circulating plasma cells (CPCs) in patients with newly diagnosed multiple myeloma (NDMM).
Methods: This retrospective study was conducted on NDMM patients treated at Beijing Chaoyang Hospital, Capital Medical University, between January 2020 and June 2023. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were used to determine the CPC cut-off values for CPCs, and patients were subsequently divided into higher and lower CPCs groups.
Results: A total of 57 patients were included, with a median age of 64 years, comprising 27 males. Based on a cut-off value of 0.0101%, 44 patients were assigned to the higher CPCs group and 13 to the lower CPCs group. The percentage of bone marrow plasma cells (BMPCs) was significantly higher in the higher CPCs group compared to the lower CPCs group (53.07% vs. 15.23%, P<0.001). In the higher CPCs group, BMPCs exhibited decreased expression of CD56 and CD27, but increased expression of CD81 (all P<0.05). The median PFS in the lower CPCs group (17.6 months, 9.12–31.54) was significantly higher than that in the higher CPCs group (14.1 months, 5.08–26.12) (P=0.015). Multivariate Cox regression analysis identified CPCs ≥0.0101% (HR=6.721, 95% CI: 3.891-11.224, P<0.001) as the independent prognostic factors for PFS.
Conclusion: This study demonstrates distinct immunophenotypic differences between the higher and lower CPCs groups in NDMM patients. Furthermore, CPCs might serve as a valuable prognostic marker for MMs.
Copyright (c) 2025 Hong Chen, Yuan Zhao, Zhiyu Zhang, Yan Xie, Mulan Jin
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