High Levels of Interleukin-6 Are Associated With Low Tumor Burden and Low Growth Fraction in Multiple Myeloma

• Published in: Blood Vol. 83; no. 7; pp. 1903 - 1908
• Main Authors: Ballester, Oscar F., Moscinski, Lynn C., Lyman, Gary H., Chaney, J. Victor, Saba, H.I., Spiers, A.S.D., Klein, C.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Washington, DC Elsevier Inc 01.04.1994; The Americain Society of Hematology
• Subjects: Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Biological and medical sciences; Cell Division; Female; Hematologic and hematopoietic diseases; Humans; Interleukin-6 - analysis; Interleukin-6 - therapeutic use; Leukemias. Malignant lymphomas. Malignant reticulosis. Myelofibrosis; Male; Medical sciences; Middle Aged; Multiple Myeloma - metabolism; Multiple Myeloma - mortality; Multiple Myeloma - pathology; Survival Rate; Tumor Cells, Cultured; Human; Interleukin 6; Immunopathology; Immunoglobulinopathy; Lymphoproliferative syndrome; Cytokine; Exploration; Malignant hemopathy; Myeloma
• ISSN: 0006-4971; 1528-0020
• DOI: 10.1182/blood.V83.7.1903.1903

Interleukin-6 (IL-6) is a multifunctional cytokine postulated to play a central role as a growth factor for multiple myeloma (MM). We evaluated the spontaneous secretion of IL-6 in supernatants of Ficoll-Hypaque-enriched bone marrow (BM) cultures from 35 patients with MM. The levels of IL-6 were correlated with biological and clinical characteristics of the disease. High levels of IL-6 production defined a subgroup of patients with low tumor burden as determined by lower serum β2-microglobulin (B2M) (P = .02) and lower percentage of myeloma cells infiltrating the bone marrow (P = .003), higher synthetic rates of monoclonal protein (P = .006), and low proliferative compartments as measured by the percentage of Ki-67-positive myeloma cells. Patients with high proliferative fractions (Ki-67-positive myeloma cells > 20%) had significantly lower levels of IL-6 when compared with patients with low proliferative fractions (P = .005). Our findings do not support IL-6 as a major growth factor for MM, but demonstrate an association of high levels of IL-6 secretion with low tumor cell burden and low proliferative fraction.