Alessandro Pileri

Oncogenes in the Pathogenesis of Multiple Myeloma

Molecular pathogenesis of multiple myeloma (MM) is largely unknown. There are several lines of evidence suggesting that malignant transformation occurs through a multistep process involving the activation of proto-oncogenes, the loss of tumor suppressor genes, and the deregulation of cytokine network. Cytogenetic studies have been difficult to perform because of low tumor mitotic activity. Karyotypic abnormalities are present in 30% of patients, no disease-specific anomaly has been detected so far. Aneuploidy is frequent, and a variety of chromosomal translocations has been reported (1).