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Updated: Aug 19, 2026
An Organotypic High Throughput System for Characterization of Drug Sensitivity of Primary Multiple Myeloma Cells
Published on: July 15, 2015
Clinicopathological and prognostic characteristics of CD56-negative multiple myeloma
Naohi Sahara1, Akihiro Takeshita, Kazuyuki Shigeno
1Internal Medicine III, Hamamatsu University School of Medicine, 1-20-1 Handayama, Hamamatsu-shi, 431-3192 Japan. sahara@hama-med.ac.jp
Abstract:
We analysed CD56 expression in 70 patients with multiple myeloma (MM) to determine its clinicopathological and prognostic significance. Fifty-five (79%) patients were CD56+. CD56- patients (n = 15) had higher beta2 microglobulin levels and a higher incidence of extramedullary disease, Bence Jones protein, renal insufficiency and thrombocytopenia than CD56+ patients. Their myelomas more frequently had a plasmablastic morphology. Overall survival was significantly lower in CD56- than CD56+ patients (22 vs 63 months, P = 0.0002). We conclude that CD56- MM is a discrete entity associated with more aggressive disease. The higher incidence of plasmablastic cases suggested that CD56- MM may develop from a less mature plasma cell than CD56+ MM.
