In this case we are talking about a bad news problem for blacks–multiple myeloma which is associated with gammopathies.
Black populations suffer from a much higher rate of the both multiple myeloma and the gammopathies.
Racial Disparities in Prevalence of Monoclonal Gammopathies
Research · February 21, 2014
TAKE-HOME MESSAGE
In an effort to better characterize the higher incidence of multiple myeloma in blacks, investigators performed serum protein immunofixation, serum-free light-chain analysis, and gel electrophoresis on almost 13,000 stored serum samples from the National Health and Nutritional Examination Survey (NHANES) to determine prevalence of MGUS. In this cohort, blacks had a significantly higher prevalence of MGUS compared with whites or Hispanics.
This analysis illustrates the underlying increased risk of black patients for MGUS/multiple myeloma diseases.
– Chris Tully, MD
ABSTRACT
Multiple myeloma (MM) incidence is markedly higher in blacks compared with whites, which may be related to a higher prevalence of monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance (MGUS). Our objective was to define the prevalence and risk factors of MGUS in a large cohort representative of the US population. Stored serum samples from the National Health and Nutritional Examination Survey (NHANES) III or NHANES 1999–2004 were available for 12 482 individuals of age greater than or equal to50 years (2331 ‘blacks’, 2475 Hispanics, 7051 ‘whites’ and 625 ‘others’) on which agarose-gel electrophoresis, serum protein immunofixation, serum-free light-chain assay and M-protein typing were performed. MGUS was identified in 365 participants (2.4%). Adjusted prevalence of MGUS was significantly higher (P<0.001) in blacks (3.7%) compared with whites (2.3%) (P=0.001) or Hispanics (1.8%), as were characteristics that posed a greater risk of progression to MM. The adjusted prevalence of MGUS was 3.1% and 2.1% for the North/Midwest versus South/West regions of the United States, respectively (P=0.052). MGUS is significantly more common in blacks, and more often has features associated with higher risk of progression to MM. A strong geographic disparity in the prevalence of MGUS between the North/Midwest versus the South/West regions of the United States was found, which has etiologic implications.
Leukemia
Racial Disparities in the Prevalence of Monoclonal Gammopathies: A Population-Based Study of 12 482 Persons From the National Health and Nutritional Examination Survey
Leukemia 2014 Feb 21;[EPub Ahead of Print], O Landgren, BI Graubard, JA Katzmann, RA Kyle, I Ahmadizadeh, R Clark, SK Kumar, A Dispenzieri, AJ Greenberg, TM Therneau, LJ Melton III, N Caporaso, N Korde, M Roschewski, R Costello, GM McQuillan, SV Rajkumar