Low CD27 expression in plasma cell dyscrasias correlates with high-risk disease: an immunohistochemical analysis

Genome-wide expression studies using complementary DNA microarrays recently suggested a number of intriguing candidate genes for distinguishing plasma cell dyscrasias. Our objective was to test select markers using immunohistochemical analysis and a tissue microarray from paraffin-embedded bone marrow core biopsy specimens obtained from 8 patients with monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance, 17 with plasmacytoma, 160 with multiple myeloma, and 15 with plasma cell leukemia (PCL). We immunostained serial sections for CD138, CD27, CD56, p27, Ki-67, CD3, and CD20. Each core was scored in duplicate by observers blinded to phenotype and reported as the average percentage of CD138+ cells. The Mann-Whitney U test was used to determine significance between groups. PCL showed significantly less immunostaining for CD27 (P < .01) and p27 (P < .05) compared with plasmacytoma and multiple myeloma. Low CD27 expression also was associated with plasmacytoma progression to multiple myeloma (P <.05). Our results support the hypothesis that low CD27 expression correlates with high-risk disease, including primary PCL and decreased progression-free survival in solitary plasmacytoma.