Well, I hope this turns out to be nothing. I had my auto stem cell transplant in March of this year. All went well. I had an almost complete remission. I still carry a very low M-spike of about 0.15 g/dl (1.5 g/l). Which may just be my 'normal'. I am not on any maintenance therapy, and I am with a r...

I am 9 months post-transplant (auto) and feeling great. Should I be continuing to take precautions about the exposure to dirt and mold spores after transplant? I have a horse and have been avoiding all contact with the barn. I even had to put down my beloved mare a month ago, who injured herself, an...

I have an opportunity to go camping at the 6-month post-stem cell transplant mark. There will be an RV, so that is no problem. But, there will be campfires, horses, and hay. I will have others take care of all of the dirt-related tasks, as I know that I still need to be careful. Has anyone else gone...

Thank you for sharing your experiences! Very helpful information!! It is such a gray area, and I find very little information. Even the doctors aren't absolutely certain about some of these things. I am a very active person and do so many things outdoors. This week the temp is supposed to hit 98, I ...

Hi Cathy! Glad to hear that your hubby is doing so well that he is now bored! I know, I can relate. I am now 4 months post transplant (I don't know, what is that? 120 days?) Tell him life will be back to normal soon. The boredom - I found: walking outside with my mask on - a lot! Getting on my bike ...

Hi, I am 4 months post autologous stem cell transplant and anxious to get back to doing many of the things I enjoy. Unfortunately, many of those things involve dirt, and I know that is a big concern with fungal infections. It is a hot summer, we live on a lake, and I'd love to just be able to jump i...

Hi! Yes, the sclerotic lesions are the same as osteosclerotic lesions - abnormal thickening/scarring of the bone. The doctors were quite baffled with me in the beginning and I had numerous scans and 2 BMBs as well as a biopsy of one of the lesions. After 4 months of testing, I was diagnosed with ost...

Not quite sure what is going on here. I presented with a very low M-spike measurement of 0.49 g/dL (4.9 g/L). The M-spike has fluctuated over the past year down to 0.30 and up and down within that small range. Free light chains seem to have always been within normal ranges (if I am reading my lab re...

Ok, I am 3 months post transplant, and I just got my labs back. My M-spike went from 0.42 g/dL to 0.24 g/dL (4.2 g/L to 2.4 g/L). No Bence Jones or monocolonal bands in urine. I am assuming this will be interpreted as 'partial remission'? I know that my initial numbers were low, and now are lower, b...

Cathy,

A drive home might do wonders. It is such a long and intense period for both patient and spouse. My husband went out for an hour walk each day that we went in to the day hospital. I'm sure it helped him to stay grounded. Hang in there - you are so important in all of this!