Polyclonal immunoglobulin E levels are correlated with hemoglobin values and overall survival in patients with multiple myeloma.

Purpose: Polyclonal IgG, IgA, and IgM immunoglobulins are often decreased in sera of patients with multiple myeloma (MM), whereas very few data are available on polyclonal IgE levels. We have determined IgE levels in a large series of MM patients at diagnosis and subjects with monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance (MGUS) and correlated IgE levels with survival and prognostic factors in MM.

Experimental Design: IgE were determined with a commercially available ELISA kit in 201 MM patients at diagnosis, 144 subjects with MGUS, and 77 age-matched controls.