Karen Crowley's Archive

Karen Crowley is 38 years old and lives in Kansas City, Missouri, with her husband, daughter, and elderly cat. She was diagnosed with smoldering multiple myeloma in 2005, when she was a 30-year-old new mom. When the myeloma quit smoldering in 2007, she began treatment with Revlimid and dexamethasone. She is still on Revlimid, which has been keeping her disease stable. She enjoys running, reading, and writing her blog, The Adventures of Cancer Girl, which takes a humorous look at cancer and life in general.

Karen Crowley has written 29 article(s) .

[ by | Jul 31, 2014 2:19 pm | 10 Comments ]
Myeloma Mom: Playing The Numbers Game

For my birthday a few months ago, my husband got me a Fitbit. I’m ob­sessed with it.

A Fitbit is a small device you wear inside a band that goes around your wrist. It has magical powers and can tell when you’re walking or running, and it tracks your activity throughout the day. The goal is to take at least 10,000 steps every day.

Once you hit 10,000 steps, the Fitbit lights up and buzzes happily. When you sync your …

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[ by | Jun 24, 2014 6:03 pm | 12 Comments ]
Myeloma Mom: Parenthood And Cancer Both Draw Unwanted Advice

I was diagnosed with multiple myeloma when my only daughter was six months old. I’ve experienced parenthood and cancerhood for ap­prox­i­mate­ly the same amount of time, and I can tell you the one thing these two states have in com­mon: Everyone wants to give you advice.

I suppose most of it is well-meaning advice. I mean, who wouldn’t want to know that letting a three-year-old keep her pacifier is going to turn her into a serial killer? Who doesn’t want …

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[ by | May 27, 2014 1:38 pm | 11 Comments ]
Myeloma Mom: It’s Fine To Be 39

I just turned 39 last month. Thirty-nine is not a nice, round number. A person’s 39th isn’t traditionally considered a “milestone” birthday. You don’t see Hallmark cards or mylar balloons with a giant “39” on the front.

When you’re 39, nobody puts up funny signs with poems on them like they do when you’re 40. You know: “Lordy, lordy, so-and-so is 40.” What would it be for 39? “It’s fine. It’s fine. Karen is 39.”

See? Nobody wants to see …

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[ by | Apr 22, 2014 3:09 pm | 10 Comments ]
Myeloma Mom: Some Doctors Are Worth Stalking

Have you ever had a doctor break up with you?

I’ve gotten to know a lot of doctors over the past eight years. Some have been with me since my myeloma diagnosis; others have come and gone.

Before my diagnosis, I was eerily healthy. Even as a kid, I rarely had any­thing more serious than the sniffles. For most of my life, I saw a doctor once a year for my annual checkup, and that was about it. Even my …

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[ by | Mar 25, 2014 4:30 pm | 13 Comments ]
Myeloma Mom: Dude, Where’s My M-Spike?

What would you do if suddenly, out of the blue, your myeloma just – poof! –disappeared?

I know many people achieve remission after treatment, but what if – after having stable but measurable disease for years – it simply vanished for no reason?

A few months ago, I called the doctor’s office to get my latest test results. The nurse said she couldn’t find the results for my M-spike (monoclonal protein). This has happened before, so I wasn’t worried. I …

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[ by | Feb 25, 2014 5:20 pm | 13 Comments ]
Myeloma Mom: We Can All Be Proud Of Tom Brokaw

I was in the middle of making dinner a few weeks ago when I got an urgent text from my sister-in-law.

“Did you know Tom Brokaw has multiple myeloma?”

I occasionally hear about celebrities who have multiple myeloma, and I’m always interested in their stories, but this was somehow different. This was stunning. It felt like a friend had been diagnosed.

This was Tom Brokaw! Tom Brokaw, people!

I’m not a creepy stalker. Let me explain. I’ve never technically met, …

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[ by | Jan 29, 2014 2:49 pm | 12 Comments ]
Myeloma Mom: Just Diagnosed? Remember, You’re The Boss

Sometimes newly diagnosed patients will contact me, looking for advice.  I love connecting with other patients, but when it comes to advice for the newly diagnosed, I always have to sit and think for a while. What are the most important things they should know? What do I wish I had known when I was diagnosed back in 2005?

I know that every case of multiple myeloma is different, but here are the things I have learned in my eight-plus …

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