Expression levels of calreticulin by real-time (qRT-) PCR correlate with response to high-dose melphalan. Twenty-four specimens of purified plasma cells from patients with systemic AL-amyloidosis were obtained before treatment with high-dose melphalan and assessed for calreticulin expression by qRT-PCR. GAPDH and pooled cDNA from the purified plasma cells of 3 patients with hereditary amyloidosis were used as controls. Patients were assessed for response to high-dose melphalan at 3 months after treatment. Calreticulin expression in responders was significantly higher than in nonresponders (P < .01, Mann-Whitney). The box extends from the 25th percentile to the 75th percentile, with a horizontal line at the median (50th percentile), and the whiskers extend down to the smallest and up to the largest value.