Stabilisation of laryngeal AL amyloidosis with long term curcumin therapy

Multiple myeloma (MM), smoldering myeloma (SMM), and monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance (MGUS) represent a spectrum of plasma cell dyscrasias (PCDs). Immunoglobulin light chain amyloidosis (AL) falls within the spectrum of these diseases and has a mortality rate of more than 80% within 2 years of diagnosis. Curcumin, derived from turmeric, has been shown to have a clinical benefit in some patients with PCDs. In addition to a clinical benefit in these patients, curcumin has been found to have a strong affinity for fibrillar amyloid proteins. We thus administered curcumin to a patient with laryngeal amyloidosis and smoldering myeloma and found that the patient has shown a lack of progression of his disease for a period of five years. This is in keeping with our previous findings of clinical benefits of curcumin in patients with plasma cell dyscrasias. We recommend further evaluation of curcumin in patients with primary AL amyloidosis.