Freelite™ Serum Free Light Chain Assays

Freelite is a major breakthrough for the detection and monitoring of Multiple Myeloma (MM) and other B-cell dyscrasia. There is now significant clinical evidence indicating the benefit of these assays in initial screening for monoclonal gammopathies, identifying AL amyloidosis and Nonsecretory MM patients missed by conventional methods, for risk stratification of MGUS patients* and rapid evaluation of treatment efficacy.

Freelite assays were developed by Binding Site to measure free lambda and free kappa immunoglobulin light chains. Our expertise in the manufacture of antibodies has enabled us to provide a quantifiable, highly specific, automatable free light chain assay for serum.

Summary of Data

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NOTE: Click on the image above to enlarge

Logarithmic scale plot of absolute free kappa (κ) and free lambda (λ) concentrations in a group of normal patients and those with a variety of B cell dyscrasia. Calculation of the / ratio distinguishes elevated polyclonal immunoglobulin and renal impairment (κ/λ ratio is normal) from monoclonal gammopathies with an abnormal / ratio e.g. Lambda and Kappa BJ.

Published data indicate that 100% of patients with Light Chain (Bence Jones) Multiple Myeloma1, 82% of patients with Nonsecretory Multiple Myeloma2, over 98% of patients with AL amyloidosis3 and 96% of Intact Immunoglobulin Multiple Myeloma patients4 have abnormal serum free light chain concentrations. This improvement in disease detection rates, and the superior utility of serum free light chains for disease monitoring, may obviate the need for urine free light chain tests in most patients with monoclonal plasma diseases.

Additionally, the serum free light chain ratio has been identified as a major new independent risk factor for progression of patients with MGUS to multiple myeloma or other related disorders5 *.

General information on the use of serum free light chains is available in a paper published in Clinical Laboratory International (CLI) in November 2003 and in a recent Clinical Chemistry editorial6.

 

* In the USA diagnostic use of this product is restricted to those stated in the product insert

Freelite Web SiteFreelite Website

Freelite has its own web site which includes:

Serum Free Light Chain Analysis 4th EditionBooks

AR Bradwell
Serum Free Light Chain Analysis 4th Edition
The book is available to order US $75.
Please contact your local office or distributor

References

  1. Arthur R Bradwell, Hugh D Carr-Smith, Graham P Mead, Timothy C Harvey, Mark T Drayson.
    "Serum test for assessment of patients with Bence Jones myeloma"
    Lancet 2003;361:489-491
  2. Mark Drayson, Liang X. Tang, Roger Drew, Graham P. Mead, Hugh Carr-Smith, and Arthur R. Bradwell.
    "Serum free light-chain measurements for identifying and monitoring patients with nonsecretory multiple myeloma"
    Blood 2001;97:9:2900-2902
  3. Helen J. Lachmann, Ruth Gallimore, Julian D. Gillmore, Hugh D. Carr-Smith, Arthur R. Bradwell, Mark B. Pepys and Philip N. Hawkins.
    "Outcome in systemic AL amyloidosis in relation to changes in concentration of circulating free immunoglobulin light chains following chemotherapy"
    BJH 2003;122:78-84
  4. G. P. Mead, H. D. Carr-Smith, M. T. Drayson, G. J. Morgan, J. A. Child and A. R. Bradwell.
    "Serum free light chains for monitoring multiple myeloma"
    BJH 2004;126:348-354
  5. S.Vincent Rajkumar, Robert A. Kyle, Terry M. Therneau, L. Joseph Melton III, Arthur R. Bradwell, Raynell J. Clark, Dirk R. Larson, Matthew F. Plevak, Angela Dispenzieri, Jerry A. Katzmann.
    "Serum free light chain ratio is an independent risk factor for progression in monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance (MGUS)"
    Blood 2005;106;3: 812-817
  6. Arthur R. Bradwell.
    "Serum Free Light Chain Measurements Move to Center Stage"
    Clin Chem 2005;51:5:805-807

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Freelite™ is a trademark of The Binding Site Ltd, Birmingham, UK