AccScience Publishing / CP / Online First / DOI: 10.36922/CP025390062
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ORIGINAL RESEARCH ARTICLE

A systematic analysis of the global burden of multiple myeloma from 1990 to 2021

Xuan Su1 ,  Lijie Zeng2 ,  Xuena Wang1* ,  Qi Mei3*
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1 Department of Oncology, Shanxi Bethune Hospital, Shanxi Academy of Medical Sciences, Third Hospital of Shanxi Medical University, Tongji Shanxi Hospital, Taiyuan, Shanxi Province, China
2 Department of Hematology, Beijing Tongren Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China
3 Department of Oncology, Tongji Hospital, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, Hubei, China
CP, 025390062 https://doi.org/10.36922/CP025390062
Received: 25 September 2025 | Revised: 15 October 2025 | Accepted: 3 December 2025 | Published online: 5 January 2026
© 2026 by the Author(s). This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License ( https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ )
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Abstract

Multiple myeloma (MM) is a hematological malignancy characterized by the proliferation of plasma cells in the bone marrow, leading to organ dysfunction. Globally, the incidence of MM has increased substantially in recent decades, necessitating an updated understanding of its global burden and epidemiological trends. This study utilized data from the Global Burden of Disease database to analyze the incidence of MM, deaths, and disability-adjusted life years from 1990 to 2021. Age-standardized rates (ASRs) were used to adjust for variations in age distribution and population size. The estimated annual percentage changes (EAPCs) were used to evaluate temporal trends. Pearson’s correlation coefficient was employed to assess the relationship between EAPC values and sociodemographic index (SDI) levels. From 1990 to 2021, the global incident cases increased dramatically from 55.71 × 103 to 148.75 × 103, with the age-standardized incidence rate rising from 1.47 to 1.74/100,000 population. Deaths also increased significantly from 47.57 × 103 to 116.36 × 103. High-SDI regions consistently maintained the highest disease burden, while low- to middle-SDI regions demonstrated the most rapid increase in MM incidence. The EAPC of ASRs was negatively correlated with SDI in 2021. The global burden of MM substantially increased from 1990 to 2021, with significant regional and sociodemographic disparities. While high-SDI regions benefited from advances in diagnosis and treatment, low-SDI regions faced mounting challenges that require targeted interventions and coordinated international actions to effectively reduce the global MM burden.

Keywords
Multiple myeloma
Global burden of disease
Cancer epidemiology
Cancer statistics
Funding
This research was supported by the Shanxi Provincial Basic Research Program under the project titled “Shanxi Provincial Basic Research Program” with grant numbers: 202403021212263 and 202303021221191; the Talent Introduction and Research Initiation Project from Shanxi Province of China under the project titled “Talent Introduction and Research Initiation Project” with grant number: 2023RC44; the Research and Innovation Team Project for Scientific Breakthroughs at Shanxi Bethune Hospital under the project titled “Research and Innovation Team Project for Scientific Breakthroughs” with grant number: 2024AOXIANG04; the National Emergency Medical Rescue Base 2023 Translational Research Projects under the project titled “2023 Translational Research Projects” with grant number: JYJD2023-03; and the 2024 Shanxi Science and Technology Cooperation and Exchange Special Program under the project titled “2024 Shanxi Science and Technology Cooperation and Exchange Special Program” with Project ID 202404041101026.
Conflict of interest
The authors declare they have no competing interests.
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