[Prognostic factors and risk groupings in multiple myeloma].

The survival duration of patients with multiple myeloma (MM) ranges from a few months to more than 10 years. Numerous studies have been undertaken to determine which factors may influence the patients' prognosis. The identification of these prognostic factors is important both for stnatification of patients and evaluation of therapy. The factors reported to be of prognostic significance in MM include renal function, Hb, performance status, serum calcium, plasma cell labeling index, IL-6, serum beta 2-microglobulin, and CRP. Based on multivariate analysis of prognostic factors, different risk grouping systems have been proposed. However, the MM staging systems or risk groupings are still inadequate for detection of the optimal therapeutic procedure for an individual patient.