Progression Risk-Based Classification of Asymptomatic Waldenström Macroglobulinemia

Background. Waldenström macroglobulinemia (WM) is a low-grade non-Hodgkin's lymphoplasmacytic lymphoma associated with overproduction of monoclonal IgM protein. It is preceded by an asymptomatic stage, called Smoldering Waldenström Macroglobulinemia (SWM), associated with a high risk of progression to overt disease. Current understanding of progression risk in SWM is based on a few small studies, and it is still unclear how to distinguish the asymptomatic patients who will progress from those who will not.