Abstract 193: Adipocytes, obesity and the multiple myeloma microenvironment

Multiple myeloma (MM), a hematological malignancy characterized by monoclonal plasma cells in the bone marrow, affects nearly 23,000 Americans per year. Obesity contributes to the development and progression of multiple myeloma, yet the relationship between MM cells and adipocytes found in the tumor microenvironment has not been fully elucidated. To examine how adipocytes contribute to the growth and progression of MM, we co-cultured human myeloma cell lines with primary human adipocytes isolated from lipoaspirates. We found that MM cells directly co-cultured with adipocytes or exposed to their conditioned media had increased viability, angiogenic potential, invasion, colony formation, and production of inflammatory cytokines, when compared to MM cells alone. Moreover, adipocytes from obese individuals (BMI > 30) further compounded this. Thus, we demonstrate an important role for adipocytes in promoting myeloma pathologies. Citation Format: Gervaise H. Henry, Nicholas J. Watson, Rebecca C. O'Neill, Tracy Tabib, Erika M. Bullwinkle, Kathleen L. DeCicco-Skinner. Adipocytes, obesity and the multiple myeloma microenvironment. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 105th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2014 Apr 5-9; San Diego, CA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2014;74(19 Suppl):Abstract nr 193. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2014-193