Submitted May 30, 2006
Accepted August 7, 2006
Multiple myeloma bone disease: pathophysiology of osteoblast inhibition
NICOLA GIULIANI*, VITTORIO RIZZOLI, and G D ROODMAN
Cattedra e U.O. di Ematologia-CTMO, Universita Degli Studi di Parma, Parma, Italy
University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine and VA Medical Center, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
* Corresponding author; email: n_giuliani{at}yahoo.com.
Multiple myeloma (MM) is a plasma cell malignancy characterized by a high capacity to induce osteolytic bone lesions. Bone destruction in MM results from increased of osteoclast formation and activity that occur in close proximity with myeloma cells. However, histomorphometric studies have demonstrated that MM patients with osteolytic bone lesions have lower numbers of osteoblasts and decreased bone formation. This impaired bone formation plays a critical role in the bone destructive process. Recently, the biological mechanisms involved in the osteoblast inhibition induced by MM cells have begun to be elucidated. In this article, the pathophysiology underlying osteoblast inhibition in MM is reviewed.
