Malignant Hematologic Disorders and Multiple Myeloma Plasma Cells in Kinshasa

The increase in life expectancy in Africa, coupled with the continued presence of infectious diseases associated with a risk of malignancy, makes cancer a growing health problem in sub-Saharan Africa; an estimated 5% of patients receive chemotherapy. In this study, we sought to identify the types of hematologic malignancies encountered in our setting and their characteristics. The study began in 2004 and concluded in 2010. It was conducted in two clinical laboratories in the city of Kinshasa. The patients were those diagnosed with a malignant hematologic disorder based on bone marrow cytology. The study variables were epidemiological and cytological. The results allowed us to plot a frequency curve for the various entities encountered, to observe the specific characteristics of certain entities, and then to focus on the most prevalent entity, which is multiple myeloma. Examination of plasma cells using the plasma cell morphology algorithm revealed a high number of immature and aberrant plasma cells in our patients.