Blood tests for myeloma

Blood tests are an important way to diagnose the type of myeloma and to monitor myeloma. They can also check how well the myeloma is responding to treatment.

These tests include the following:

• Serum protein electrophoresis – this is a test to find out if a paraprotein (M protein) is in the blood and what type it is. If it is present, a second test may be done to find out the type.
• Paraprotein (M protein) level – this is a test to measure the amount of paraproteins in the blood.
• Light chains (serum free light chain assay) – this is a test to measure the amount of light chains in the blood and the amount of kappa and lambda light chains there are.
• Beta-2 microglobulin level (B2M) – this is a test to see how active the myeloma is and to find out the stage of the myeloma. B2M is a protein that is on the surface of most cells in the body. In people with myeloma, the level of B2M is often higher.

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