 AL amylidosis, also referred to as light chain amylidosis, is a rare disease that arises due to abnormal plasma cells. Plasma cells are immune cells that originate from the bone marrow and usually produce normal antibodies. These antibodies are made up of heavy and light chain proteins and are used to fight infections. In AL amylidosis, instead of producing normal antibodies, plasma cells produce abnormal and misfolded light chains known as amyloid proteins. These amyloid proteins then deposit in your body and disrupt normal organ function. The symptoms of AL amylidosis are usually related to the organs that are damaged by the protein deposition. The common organs affected by AL amylidosis are the heart, kidneys, nerves, gut, skin and soft tissue, and the tongue. Common symptoms include neuropathy or numbness or tingling in your hands or feet, shortness of breath related to heart involvement, or swelling of the legs such as edema due to kidney problems or heart problems, changes in skin color, joint pain and anemia. Early diagnosis of AL amylidosis is important to minimize organ damage and improve prognosis. This is commonly made with imaging, blood and urine tests, specialized testing of the affected organ systems, and likely a biopsy where a small piece of tissue is taken and looked at under a microscope. As the mechanism of disease development is similar to myeloma, AL amylidosis patients are often treated with the same drugs such as chemotherapy, immunotherapy or stem cell transplant. The treatment of AL amylidosis is complex given the organ damage caused by the disease. However, there are promising novel therapies that include a combination of drugs for the future treatment of patients with AL amylidosis. For example, drugs that can help the body to remove amyloid deposits are currently under investigation in clinical trials. For more information, please visit the MPE website.