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Maintenance or 2nd SCT ?
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Last edited by Anonymous on Sat Nov 24, 2012 7:28 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Anonymous
Re: Maintenance or 2nd SCT ?
It would appear that your father had close to a 3.5 year remission from the first go around. As such, it is highly reasonable to consider a second go around. My enthusiasm for this approach would be higher if your father is reasonably young, has few other serious medical problems and tolerated round 1 well. Realize that the second transplant may not produce as durable of a remission as the first. Your father's physician(s) may recommend maintenance therapy of some kind again after a second transplant (e.g. lenalidomide).
Lastly, if you all decide that this is the best way to go, I would do it sooner rather than later. It will only become harder to get through with more passage of time.
Best of luck to you. We wish your father the best!
Pete V.
Lastly, if you all decide that this is the best way to go, I would do it sooner rather than later. It will only become harder to get through with more passage of time.
Best of luck to you. We wish your father the best!
Pete V.
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Dr. Peter Voorhees - Name: Peter Voorhees, M.D.
Beacon Medical Advisor
Re: Maintenance or 2nd SCT ?
Dear Dr. Pete V.
Thank you so much for your answer. My father is born in 1956 so he is 56 years old.
His liver and kidneys are in good condition and he is in good health beside the multiple myeloma. He never got sick in his live before the cancer. This is also why I cannot understand why the second go around would be a better choice, i would think it would be better to save them for later and do nothing now (since there is almost no sign of myeloma in his body right now) or doing some maintenance treatment and when it comes back then do the SCT. Just a thought.
Thank you so much for your answer. My father is born in 1956 so he is 56 years old.
His liver and kidneys are in good condition and he is in good health beside the multiple myeloma. He never got sick in his live before the cancer. This is also why I cannot understand why the second go around would be a better choice, i would think it would be better to save them for later and do nothing now (since there is almost no sign of myeloma in his body right now) or doing some maintenance treatment and when it comes back then do the SCT. Just a thought.
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Anonymous
Re: Maintenance or 2nd SCT ?
Since your father is 56, otherwise healthy and appears to be in a good remission, collecting stem cells for a second transplant but storing them for future use would be a highly reasonable thing to do. If this is the approach pursued, your father should have a discussion about the pros/cons of maintenance therapy with his hematologist-oncologist at this point. If your father does decide that he is amenable to going through high dose therapy down the road, I would not save it as a last ditch option. The longer he waits, the tougher it becomes from a toxicity standpoint.
Let us know what you decide. Good luck!
Pete V.
Let us know what you decide. Good luck!
Pete V.
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Dr. Peter Voorhees - Name: Peter Voorhees, M.D.
Beacon Medical Advisor
Re: Maintenance or 2nd SCT ?
Dear Dr.Peter Voorhees,
I really appreciate you taking the time to answer me. I am not quite sure I understand you fully. Just to be clear, my father did collect stem cells back in january 2009 and used his first dosage with high dose therapy. He has one dose of stem cells left. You said : "collecting stem cells for a second transplant but storing them for future use would be a highly reasonable thing to do" My question is, is it possible to collect stem cells again?
Thank you again for your opinion, it means alot to me.
I really appreciate you taking the time to answer me. I am not quite sure I understand you fully. Just to be clear, my father did collect stem cells back in january 2009 and used his first dosage with high dose therapy. He has one dose of stem cells left. You said : "collecting stem cells for a second transplant but storing them for future use would be a highly reasonable thing to do" My question is, is it possible to collect stem cells again?
Thank you again for your opinion, it means alot to me.
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Anonymous
Re: Maintenance or 2nd SCT ?
My apologies,
If he has stem cells already available for a second transplant, there is no need to consider collecting more.
The decision at this point is observation vs. maintenance vs. second transplant now. If your father has higher risk disease, one of the latter 2 options may be preferred. If a second transplant is deferred, I would at least consider it in the not too distant future (e.g. in the next remission). Again, it is not an easy procedure to go through when the disease becomes increasingly resistant and the patient has incurred cumulativve toxicities of previous therapy.
Let us know what you all decide and good luck!
Thanks!
Pete V.
If he has stem cells already available for a second transplant, there is no need to consider collecting more.
The decision at this point is observation vs. maintenance vs. second transplant now. If your father has higher risk disease, one of the latter 2 options may be preferred. If a second transplant is deferred, I would at least consider it in the not too distant future (e.g. in the next remission). Again, it is not an easy procedure to go through when the disease becomes increasingly resistant and the patient has incurred cumulativve toxicities of previous therapy.
Let us know what you all decide and good luck!
Thanks!
Pete V.
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Dr. Peter Voorhees - Name: Peter Voorhees, M.D.
Beacon Medical Advisor
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