Interphase Detection of t(4;14)(p16.3;q32.3) by In Situ Hybridization and FGFR3 Overexpression in Plasma Cell Malignancies

The immunoglobulin (Ig) genes are frequently involved in chromosomal rearrangements with a wide variety of partner loci in multiple myeloma (MM). However, several partner chromosomes have not been detected by conventional cytogenetic methods; for example, 4p16.3 (FGFR3), 6p25.3 (IRF4), and 16q23 (c-maf). To clarify the incidence of t(4;14)(p16.3;q32.3) in primary tumors of MM and to evaluate possible correlations with specific manifestations of the disease, G-banding, double-color fluorescence in situ hybridization (DC-FISH), and/or reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) were performed on 40 patients with MM—two with plasmacytoma (PCM) and three with plasma cell leukemia (PCL). All patients were studied by DC-FISH; 40 were studied by G-banding and 36 were studied by RT-PCR. The FISH probes consisted of a cosmid pC385.12 containing the FGFR3 gene, a YAC Y6 containing VH, and a phage Igγ1-10 containing the γ1 constant region (Cγ). We identified eight patients with either FGFR3/Cγ fusion or FGFR3 overexpression: six patients with both FGFR3/Cγ fusion and FGFR3 overexpression, one patient with FGFR3/Cγ, and one with FGFR3 overexpression. FGFR3/Cγ fusion was demonstrated at a frequency of 19% to 38% on interphase nuclei in seven of the 45 patients. Lytic bone lesions were found to be associated with FGFR3 overexpression. Interphase FISH with FGFR3 and Cγ probes combined with RT-PCR proved to be an effective tool for detection of this fully cryptic translocation, thus facilitating the characterization of clinical features of MM patients with t(4;14).