{"title":"Advances in estimating plasma cells in bone marrow: A comprehensive method review","authors":"Ethan Gantana, E. Musekwa, Z. Chapanduka","doi":"10.4102/ajlm.v13i1.2381","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"The quantitation of plasma cells in bone marrow (BM) is crucial for diagnosing and classifying plasma cell neoplasms. Various methods, including Romanowsky-stained BM aspirates (BMA), immunohistochemistry, flow cytometry, and radiological imaging, have been explored. However, challenges such as patchy infiltration and sample haemodilution can impact the reliability of BM plasma cell percentage estimates. Bone marrow plasma cell percentage varies across methods, with immunohistochemically stained biopsies consistently yielding higher values than Romanowsky-stained BMA or flow cytometry alone. CD138 or MUM1 immunohistochemistry and artificial intelligence image analysis on whole-slide images are emerging as promising tools for accurate plasma cell identification and quantification. Radiological imaging, particularly with advanced technologies like dual-energy computed tomography and radiomics, shows potential for multiple myeloma diagnosis, although standardisation remains a challenge. Molecular techniques, such as allele-specific oligonucleotide quantitative polymerase chain reaction and next-generation sequencing, offer insights into clonality and measurable residual disease. While no consensus exists on a gold standard method for BM plasma cell quantitation, CD138-stained biopsies are favoured for accurate estimation and play a pivotal role in diagnosing and assessing multiple myeloma treatment responses. Combining multiple methods, such as BMA, BM biopsy, and flow cytometry, enhances accuracy of diagnosis and classification of plasma cell neoplasms. The quest for a gold standard requires ongoing research and collaboration to refine existing methods. Furthermore, the rise of digital pathology is anticipated to reshape laboratory medicine and the role of pathologists in the digital era.What this study adds: This article adds a comprehensive review and comparison of different methods for plasma cell estimation in the bone marrow, highlighting their strengths and limitations. The goal is to contribute valuable insights that can guide the selection of optimal techniques for accurate plasma cell estimation.","PeriodicalId":1,"journal":{"name":"Accounts of Chemical Research","volume":"115 8","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":16.4000,"publicationDate":"2024-07-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Accounts of Chemical Research","FirstCategoryId":"1085","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.4102/ajlm.v13i1.2381","RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q1","JCRName":"CHEMISTRY, MULTIDISCIPLINARY","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
The quantitation of plasma cells in bone marrow (BM) is crucial for diagnosing and classifying plasma cell neoplasms. Various methods, including Romanowsky-stained BM aspirates (BMA), immunohistochemistry, flow cytometry, and radiological imaging, have been explored. However, challenges such as patchy infiltration and sample haemodilution can impact the reliability of BM plasma cell percentage estimates. Bone marrow plasma cell percentage varies across methods, with immunohistochemically stained biopsies consistently yielding higher values than Romanowsky-stained BMA or flow cytometry alone. CD138 or MUM1 immunohistochemistry and artificial intelligence image analysis on whole-slide images are emerging as promising tools for accurate plasma cell identification and quantification. Radiological imaging, particularly with advanced technologies like dual-energy computed tomography and radiomics, shows potential for multiple myeloma diagnosis, although standardisation remains a challenge. Molecular techniques, such as allele-specific oligonucleotide quantitative polymerase chain reaction and next-generation sequencing, offer insights into clonality and measurable residual disease. While no consensus exists on a gold standard method for BM plasma cell quantitation, CD138-stained biopsies are favoured for accurate estimation and play a pivotal role in diagnosing and assessing multiple myeloma treatment responses. Combining multiple methods, such as BMA, BM biopsy, and flow cytometry, enhances accuracy of diagnosis and classification of plasma cell neoplasms. The quest for a gold standard requires ongoing research and collaboration to refine existing methods. Furthermore, the rise of digital pathology is anticipated to reshape laboratory medicine and the role of pathologists in the digital era.What this study adds: This article adds a comprehensive review and comparison of different methods for plasma cell estimation in the bone marrow, highlighting their strengths and limitations. The goal is to contribute valuable insights that can guide the selection of optimal techniques for accurate plasma cell estimation.
期刊介绍:
Accounts of Chemical Research presents short, concise and critical articles offering easy-to-read overviews of basic research and applications in all areas of chemistry and biochemistry. These short reviews focus on research from the author’s own laboratory and are designed to teach the reader about a research project. In addition, Accounts of Chemical Research publishes commentaries that give an informed opinion on a current research problem. Special Issues online are devoted to a single topic of unusual activity and significance.
Accounts of Chemical Research replaces the traditional article abstract with an article "Conspectus." These entries synopsize the research affording the reader a closer look at the content and significance of an article. Through this provision of a more detailed description of the article contents, the Conspectus enhances the article's discoverability by search engines and the exposure for the research.