[Successful treatment with a combination of lenalidomide and dexamethasone for cryoglobulinemia associated with multiple myeloma]

Rinsho Ketsueki. 2014 Aug;55(8):953-7.
[Article in Japanese]

Abstract

Cryoglobulinemia (Cg) in multiple myeloma (MM) is rare and no standard treatment has yet been established. Herein, we report a case of MM with Cg, successfully treated with a combination of lenalidomide and dexamethasone. A 76-year-old woman suffering from skin ulcerations, extremity pain and peripheral neuropathy was diagnosed as having IgG-kappa MM with Cg in 1992. She intermittently received conventional chemotherapy, immunosuppressant therapy and plasma exchange. Despite these treatments, Cg-related symptoms eventually became uncontrollable. She was admitted to our hospital in 2012 because of worsening skin symptoms involving both ankles. Plasmapheresis proved ineffective. Improvement of skin ulcerations and numbness was achieved with administration of lenalidomide at 25 mg daily with weekly dexamethasone, which also decreased the cryoglobulin level. The course of this patient suggests that lenalidomide plus dexamethasone is a promising treatment for MM with Cg.

Publication types

  • Case Reports

MeSH terms

  • Aged
  • Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols / therapeutic use*
  • Cryoglobulinemia / drug therapy*
  • Cryoglobulinemia / etiology
  • Dexamethasone / administration & dosage
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Lenalidomide
  • Multiple Myeloma / complications
  • Multiple Myeloma / drug therapy*
  • Plasmapheresis / methods
  • Thalidomide / administration & dosage
  • Thalidomide / analogs & derivatives

Substances

  • Thalidomide
  • Dexamethasone
  • Lenalidomide