Recent studies suggest that circulating tumor cells and cell-free DNA may represent powerful non-invasive tools for disease monitoring in patients with solid and hematological malignancies. Here, we conducted a pilot study in 27 myeloma patients to explore the clonotypic V(D)J rearrangement for monitoring of circulating myeloma cells (cmc-V(D)J) and cell-free myeloma DNA (cfm-V(D)J). Next-generation sequencing was used to define the myeloma V(D)J rearrangement and for subsequent peripheral blood tracking after treatment initiation. Positivity for cmc-/cfm-V(D)J was associated with conventional remission status (p<0.001) and 91% of non-responders/progressors versus 41% of responders had evidence of persistent cmc-/cfm-V(D)J (p<0.001). About half of the partial responders showed complete clearance of cmc-/cfm-V(D)J despite persistent M-protein, suggesting that these markers are less inert than the M-protein, rely more on cell turnover and therefore decline more rapidly after initiation of effective treatment. Positivity for cmc- and cfm-V(D)J was associated with each other (p=0.042), but in 30% discordant. This indicated that cfm-V(D)J may not be generated entirely by circulating myeloma cells and may reflect overall tumor burden. Prospective studies need to define the predictive potential of high-sensitivity determination of circulating myeloma cells and DNA in the monitoring of multiple myeloma.
