AL amyloidosis: advances in diagnosis and management

Light chain (AL) amyloidosis is a disease in which malignant plasma cell clones affect multiple organs including the heart and kidney. The mechanism for organ function deterioration in AL amyloidosis differs from multiple myeloma. Thus, not all agents used to treat multiple myeloma shows similar efficacy in AL amyloidosis. In AL amyloidosis, both hematologic and organ responses after treatment are important to improve the clinical outcome. Especially, improving heart function is one of the key aspects in the treatment of AL amyloidosis. With recent advances in the understanding of the pathophysiologic mechanism of AL amyloidosis, novel treatment methods are under active trial. In this article, I have reviewed the advances in pathophysiology, diagnosis, risk stratification, and treatment of AL amyloidosis.