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Definition
By Mayo Clinic staffA small number of healthy people have an abnormal protein (monoclonal protein or M protein) in their blood. This condition, called monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance (MGUS), is benign and usually causes no problems. In a few people, however, monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance progresses over decades to other disorders, including some forms of cancer.
It's difficult to predict who will develop a more serious disease. For this reason, if you have monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance you'll usually have annual checkups to monitor the level of M protein in your blood. If there's no increase in the protein, monoclonal gammopathy doesn't require treatment.
And when monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance does progress, close monitoring means that problems can be diagnosed and treated early.
- Monoclonal gammopathy. MayoClinic.org. http://www.mayoclinic.org/monoclonal-gammopathy. Accessed Sept. 5, 2008.
- Monoclonal gammopathy: Treatment. MayoClinic.org. http://www.mayoclinic.org/monoclonal-gammopathy/treatment.html. Accessed Sept. 5, 2008.
- Monoclonal gammopathies of undetermined significance (MGUS). The Merck Manuals Online Medical Library. http://www.merck.com/mmhe/sec14/ch175/ch175b.html. Accessed Sept. 5, 2008.
- Kyle RA, et al. Monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance. British Journal of Haemotology. 2006;134(6):573-589.
- Gertz M. What is monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance? International Myeloma Foundation. http://myeloma.org/main.jsp?type=article&id=879. Accessed Sept. 5, 2008.
- Rajkumar SV, et al. Recognition of monoclonal proteins. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed Sept. 5, 2008.
- New Mayo study shows higher prevalence of MGUS, a pre-cancerous blood disorder, than previously suspected. MayoClinic.org. http://www.mayoclinic.org/news2006-rst/3302.html. Accessed Sept. 5, 2008.
- Landgren O, et al. Risk of monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance (MGUS) and subsequent multiple myeloma among African American and white veterans in the United States. Blood. 2006;107(3):904-906.
