[albertlannon]

Muddled hearing / auditory neuropathy from VRD / RVD?

by albertlannon on Sun May 20, 2018 8:56 pm

I was diagnosed in the summer of 2017 and started on a Velcade, Revlimid, and dexa­meth­a­sone (VRD / RVD) treat­ment regimen along with Zometa. When I developed neuropathy symptoms –- cold fingers, tingling and numb feet, foot cramps – the Velcade was stopped. The myeloma remains pretty stable, but the hearing in my left ear has gotten increasingly muddled.

I take magnesium and raw apple cider vinegar as supplements, which may help the foot neuropathy, which comes and goes.

I am totally deaf in my right ear, the result of an acoustic neuroma that was radiated almost 20 years ago, and have relied on my left ear, which has been okay. My left ear hearing has gotten increasingly muddled and I have difficulty with conversations, TV, films, theater, music, etc. Some voice ranges are worse than others.

I saw my ENT doctor and hearing tests show me about the same as a year and a half ago (before diagnosis and treatment), and he thinks it's neuropathy that affects the nerve endings to do with hearing. My oncologist, whom I respect and trust, doesn't believe that the treatment regimen I've had affects hearing.

I have some $5 "earglasses" that help in one-on-one conversations and somewhat in other circumstances. They are the equivalent of cupping your hand behind your ear and add a few decibels.

I'm going to look at hearing aids, but research tells me there's not much hope there. At age 80, though, I can always get away with being a deaf old geezer, but I'm wondering if this sort of problem is common, and whether I can expect the hearing to get better, or if there's anything I can do to help it get better.

[Ian]

Re: Muddled hearing / auditory neuropathy from VRD / RVD?

by Ian on Mon May 21, 2018 4:34 am

Sorry to hear about your hearing issues, Albert.

As I understand it, it's rare for hearing loss to occur as a result of treatment-related neuropathy. However, it's not unheard of. You'll see some experiences similar to yours discussed in this forum thread:

"Hearing loss from Velcade, thalidomide & dexamethasone?" (started June 8, 2012)

A couple of published case studies also are mentioned in that post.

You may be able to find more experiences similar to your own in this list of hearing-related forum discussions, which I found in the "previous forum discussions" post, at the top of this (Treat­ments & Side Effects) section of the forum.

Cheers!