[parker peter]

late stage myeloma

by parker peter on Fri Mar 11, 2011 3:18 am

Hi all! I have read many columns about induction therapy a.so. but only a few articles about late stage disease. What about palliative medicine? What about being in clinical trials? What is about just "being" at this stage? It's a hard topic but it is a part of myeloma. Peter

[BuffaloPat]

Re: late stage myeloma

by BuffaloPat on Thu Mar 17, 2011 12:05 pm

This is a really good question. I have no answers, but I do wonder about the semantics of how to think about the situation of being diagnosed stage III and later achieving remission. Does that mean that "late stage" is no longer late stage? Or does the term late stage simply apply to a situation where no further treatment is recommended or even helpful? This is more a case of "end stage." When I research signs and symtoms of this, I discover conditions such as bruising, anemia, broken bones, and internal bleeding. I'm guessing that anyone who is this ill would not be online or asking questions. At this point of life, maybe "just being" is the best medicine. Until then, there is a lot one can do treatment-wise and in terms of wellness and self-care. I would love to hear other thoughts and opinions on all this...especially from medical professionals. Thanks for bringing this up, Peter. Sometimes the terminology is confusing--clarification is not so easy to find.

[cyom22]

Re: late stage myeloma

by cyom22 on Thu Mar 17, 2011 4:29 pm

Thanks for asking about this. I'm stage 3, in remission now, w/ multiple bone lesions. When I hear of someone passing away from multiple myeloma, I always wonder, was it pneumonia, dvt w/ Pulmonary embolism, renal failure ? ect. I'm very happy where I'm at now, but I do worry once in a while about the future.

[Sherri Parker]

Re: late stage myeloma

by Sherri Parker on Thu Mar 17, 2011 9:19 pm

Well, I was diagnosed Stage lll multiple myeloma. I underwent 2 surgeries, chemo, stem cell transplant, and more chemo. I acheived remission after the transplant. It has been 2 years(I am going tomorrow for my 2 yr. check up and scans, etc,) and my oncologist has never mentioned stage lll again, except when talking about where I started. I have never really thought about this before...