[Ian]

Re: Frequent infections - any treatment options?

by Ian on Sun Jul 06, 2014 1:54 pm

Sorry to hear about your interstitial cystitis diagnosis, Laurie.

I had not heard about interstitial cystitis (IC) before you mentioned it, so all I can say about it is based on some limited reading I did after seeing your posting.

However, the Wikipedia article on IC says that its cause is unknown. Also, by definition, you can't have IC if the source of the problem is an infection. Here's the Wikipedia article in case you haven't already read it:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interstitial_cystitis

One thing that caught my attention in the article was this:

"Some people with IC/BPS suffer from other conditions that may have the same etiology as IC/BPS. These include: irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue syndrome, endometriosis, vulvodynia, chemical sensitivities, allergies, Sjogren's syndrome, Systemic lupus erythematosus, and anxiety disorder."

If you poke around here in the forum long enough, you'll find a lot of people who were diagnosed with smoldering myeloma or multiple myeloma who initially were diagnosed with one or more of the above conditions.

Also, from what I can see, it seems that IC may be a type of autoimmune disorder, and there seems to be a correlation between a history of autoimmune disorders and developing diseases such as myeloma. Here's a study on the subject:

McShane et al, "Prior autoimmune disease and risk of monoclonal gammopathy of un­de­ter­mined significance and multiple myeloma: a systematic review", Cancer Epidemiol Bio­markers Prev. 2014 Feb;23(2):332-42.

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Several observational studies have investigated autoimmune disease and sub­sequent risk of monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance (MGUS) and multi­ple myeloma. Findings have been largely inconsistent and hindered by the rarity and hetero­geneity of the autoimmune disorders investigated. A systematic review of the literature was undertaken to evaluate the strength of the evidence linking prior autoimmune disease and risk of MGUS/multiple myeloma.

METHODS: A broad search strategy using key terms for MGUS, multiple myeloma, and 50 autoimmune diseases was used to search four electronic databases (PubMed, Medline, Embase, and Web of Science) from inception through November 2011.

RESULTS: A total of 52 studies met the inclusion criteria, of which 32 were suitably com­par­able to perform a meta-analysis. "Any autoimmune disorder" was associated with an increased risk of both MGUS [n = 760 patients; pooled relative risk (RR) 1.42; 95% confidence interval (CI), 1.14-1.75] and multiple myeloma (n>2,530 patients; RR 1.13, 95% CI, 1.04-1.22). This risk was disease dependent with only pernicious anemia showing an increased risk of both MGUS (RR 1.67; 95% CI, 1.21-2.31) and multiple myeloma (RR 1.50; 95% CI, 1.25-1.80).

CONCLUSIONS: Our findings, based on the largest number of autoimmune disorders and patients with MGUS/multiple myeloma reported to date, suggest that autoimmune diseases and/or their treatment may be important in the etiology of MGUS/multiple myeloma. The strong associations observed for pernicious anemia suggest that anemia seen in plasma cell dyscrasias may be of autoimmune origin.

IMPACT: Underlying mechanisms of autoimmune diseases, general immune dysfunction, and/or treatment of autoimmune diseases may be important in the pathogenesis of MGUS / multiple myeloma.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24451437

[ldahle1]

Re: Frequent infections - any treatment options?

by ldahle1 on Mon Jul 07, 2014 10:36 pm

Thank you Ian for your detailed response. I guess this sends me back to the gyno, or maybe a rheumatologist. I'm sure I'm not alone in my feeling of being a pinball bouncing from one doctor to another. Is this common in the early stages of this disease, or is there a secret to finding a single source of medical attention?

I wish there was a real "House" out there somewhere!