Author Affiliations
- Jo Caers1,2,*⇑,
- Nadia Withofs3,*,
- Jens Hillengass4,
- Paolo Simoni5,
- Elena Zamagni6,
- Roland Hustinx3 and
- Yves Beguin1,2
- 1Department of Hematology, CHU Liège, Belgium
- 2Laboratory of Hematology, GIGA-I³, University of Liège, Belgium
- 3Department of Nuclear Medicine, CHU Liège, Belgium
- 4Department of Hematology and Oncology, University of Heidelberg, Germany
- 5Department of Radiology, CHU Liège, Belgium
- 6“Seràgnoli” Institute of Hematology, Bologna University School of Medicine, Italy
- Correspondence: jo.caers{at}chu.ulg.ac.be
Abstract
Multiple myeloma is the second most common hematologic malignancy and occurs most commonly in elderly patients. Almost all multiple myeloma patients develop bone lesions in the course of their disease or have evidence of bone loss at initial diagnosis. Whole-body conventional radiography remains the gold standard in the diagnostic evaluation, but computed tomography, magnetic resonance imaging and 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography are increasingly used as complementary techniques in the detection of bone lesions. Moreover, the number of lesions detected and the presence of extramedullary disease give strong prognostic information. These new techniques may help to assess treatment response in solitary plasmacytoma or in multiple myeloma. In this article, we review recent data on the different imaging techniques used at diagnosis and in the assessment of treatment response, and discuss some current issues.
- Received May 22, 2013.
- Accepted November 29, 2013.
- Copyright© Ferrata Storti Foundation