All cells in the body are heavily coated with sugars, a process known as glycosylation. Changes in cellular glycosylation are a recognized feature of many cancers, such changes often being associated with more aggressive behavior and a tendency to spread or metastasize to distant sites. Until recently little was known of the role of glycosylation in the progression of the blood cancer multiple myeloma. Our work reveals that glycosylation-related genes are abnormally expressed in multiple myeloma. In particular, we have found that overexpression of an important glycosylation gene called ST3GAL6 is associated with more aggressive disease and poor prognosis in patients with multiple myeloma. We believe that ST3GAL6 may be a new biomarker of progression as well as a potential therapeutic target.