[Progression from Crow-Fukase syndrome with double gammopathy (IgM-kappa, IgG-lambda) to primary macroglobulinemia]

This report deals with a case of double gammopathy (IgM-kappa, IgG-lambda) with Crow-Fukase syndrome, which developed into primary macroglobulinemia four years after the diagnosis. In May 1980, a 74-year-old woman was admitted to the hospital because of a rapid progression of peripheral neuropathy. The patient was diagnosed as having Crow-Fukase syndrome from the following data: albumin-cytologic dissociation of cerebrospinal fluid, peripheral edema, diffuse hyperpigmentation of the skin, diabetic glucose intolerance, serum double gammopathy (IgM-kappa, IgG-lambda) and hepatomegaly. The administration of prednisolone yielded the improvement of neuropathy. In December 1984, serum IgM level was increased from 104 mg/dl to 3,025 mg/dl. Plasma cells in the bone marrow increased in the percentage from 5.6% to 18.4%, and then Bence Jones protein (kappa type) was excreted in the urine. No antibody activity to myelin antigens was detected in the serum. The patient died of cerebral infarction in 1985. At postmortem examination, lymphomatous involvement was found in the jejunum. At the immunohistological examination of the tumor specimens, the morphology and the distribution of IgM- and IgG-positive cells corresponded to that of kappa- and lambda-positive cells, respectively. A small number of cells containing both kappa and lambda light chains were also demonstrated. It seems likely that IgM (kappa)- and IgG (lambda)-positive cells were derived from the common precursor cells.