10 Bone Marrow Cancer Symptoms
Symptom #6: Decreased urinary output
Acute renal failure is one of the complications that may occur in multiple myeloma. However, the cause is often multifactorial. The most common cause of kidney damage in MM is the high excretion of immunoglobulin free light chains. Abnormal plasma cells in MM do not make normal antibodies anymore, but instead, they make too much of one kind of protein (i.e. immunoglobulin free light chains) that ends up floating in the bloodstream of the patient. This blood is filtered by the kidney (glomeruli) and enters structures known as renal tubules. Thus, these abnormal proteins bind another type of protein in the urine (Tamm Horsfall), resulting in the formation of large casts that block the tubules and cause an inflammatory reaction in the surrounding renal tissue. This process results in kidney damage (myeloma kidney) and can result in renal failure.
Common signs and symptoms of acute renal failure include decreased urinary output, swelling in the lower extremity (feet, ankle, leg, nausea, fatigue, and shortness of breath.
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