title: Multiple myeloma. The diagnostic role and prognostic significance of exfoliative cytology.
abstract: The clinical significance and diverse cytomorphologic spectrum of exfoliative cytology in multiple myeloma are presented from our 20-year retrospective and continuing prospective studies and from an extensive review of the literature. Of 370 myeloma patients studied retrospectively, 126 had at least one exfoliative cytologic specimen but only 6 had one or more specimens positive for myeloma. These included six pleural and two ascitic fluids and one sputum. In Papanicolaou-stained smears, myeoloma cells varied from essentially normal-appearing plasma cells to dispersed large malignant cells with little or no plasmacytoid features. Whereas all 203 cervical or vaginal, cerebrospinal, urine and bronchial specimens were negative for myeloma, 40% and 50% of the pleural and ascitic fluids, respectively, were positive. Four prospectively studied patients produced a total of seven positive serous fluid specimens. Follow-up data was available for eight patients with cytology positive for myeoloma. Six were dead within three months of the first positive specimen.
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D003584:Cytological Techniques; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009101:Multiple Myeloma / Q000473:pathology*; D011379:Prognosis; D012189:Retrospective Studies