My boyfriend (63) just got diagnosed with multiple myeloma early December 2013, less than a month ago. Most of his back has multiple compressed fractures and he's in excruciating pain at the hospital now for a week. T4 is totally collapesed and MRI shows possible torn ligaments near the T6 vertebra which is where the pain is coming from. He's on the highest pain medication possible including a Dilaudid drip, pain patch, anti-anxiety medication and steriods. He is due to start chemo soon as his Medicare D starts now in January.
We're obviously depressed that he'll never get strong or pain free to go through SCT in four months. He's pretty immobile. In one week he went from walking with a cane to not being able to move. That's how fast his back went bad. A doctor yesterday was going to administer a shot to dumb a nerve on his back and simply left saying the shot could puncture his lung and he wouldn't do it.
Not sure if any of you can shed some light into this horrible situation. God Bless each of you suffering with this disease!
Thank you!
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Re: Multiple compressed fractures and torn ligament on the b
Sorry to hear what your boyfriend is going through. While I have no personal experience with this kind of awful and chronic pain, what occurs to me is contacting a palliative care facility that may have a better approach for the pain management. A lot of folks think of palliative care as being only a component of end-of-life hospice care, but this is absolutely not the case.
I assume he has already started some sort of mm-specific chemo (including Zometa for his bones) in prep for an SCT? This will also help provide some relief.
There are also out-patient treatments such as kyphoplasty that can be used to alleviate the compressed vertebrae.
I assume he has already started some sort of mm-specific chemo (including Zometa for his bones) in prep for an SCT? This will also help provide some relief.
There are also out-patient treatments such as kyphoplasty that can be used to alleviate the compressed vertebrae.
Last edited by Multibilly on Wed Jan 01, 2014 1:12 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Multibilly - Name: Multibilly
- Who do you know with myeloma?: Me
- When were you/they diagnosed?: Smoldering, Nov, 2012
Re: Multiple compressed fractures and torn ligament on the b
Although my injuries were not as severe as your boyfriend's are, I did suffer several compression fractures in 2009 and I can assure you that was the worst pain I have ever had. I did need pain meds at that time (Tylenol 3's) and was also offered stronger meds if needed, such as morphine. Oddly to me, since I knew not much about myeloma at that time, was that the bisphosphonate treatments given me for bone strengthening, helped with the pain too. I was given Aredia at regular intervals for more than three years, and it was started right away after my diagnosis. (Probably nowadays one would be given Zometa though). I had a lot of other chemo too....for almost two years. All of this helped immensely and I live quite a normal life again now.
So I hope that the medical care that you are receiving will also help for healing with your boyfriend. Best wishes to both of you, and hang in there!
So I hope that the medical care that you are receiving will also help for healing with your boyfriend. Best wishes to both of you, and hang in there!
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Nancy Shamanna - Name: Nancy Shamanna
- Who do you know with myeloma?: Self and others too
- When were you/they diagnosed?: July 2009
Re: Multiple compressed fractures and torn ligament on the b
Hello Terrih,
First of all, I'm really sorry about what you and your boyfriend are going through, but want to say at least in my position I was able to get through something pretty similar.
I had 8 compression fractures back in spring of 2010, and completely understand the pain your boyfriend is going through. Its excruciating, and for at least a couple weeks I remember there was no pain medicine that would help, the only thing I could do was sit there, and try desperately not to move, but even that hurt.
The healing did begin, however, and over time I underwent several different chemo regiments, and gradually was able to start to walk. After that, went through a stem cell transplant, was successful, but still had to wear a fentanyl patch in order to tolerate the pain that was still eminating from my back. I used a cane, sometimes a walker, and if a very short difference, would try to walk on my own. In early 2011, I underwent a kyphoplasty on L3/L4, which ended up hurting like the dickens at first, but a week later I began the process of getting off the Fentanyl, and after six weeks, was walking on my own, with no pain meds. I skiied the following winter, and while I'm not the athlete I once was, get to do most everything I would like to do.
So, long story short, there IS hope. The road your boyfriend is travelling is a painful one, and I would do most anything to take away the pain he is about to go through, but it will get better, and if you hadn't noticed, I'm a big proponent of kyphoplasty, for me it was a miracle worker. Start looking early for a neurosurgeon who would perform the procedure, they won't be able to right away until the cancer is gone, but getting someone on board soon should help. If you run into a neurosurgeon who says no, move on, and keep moving on until you find a good one who will.
One last suggestion, after the first couple weeks in the hospital, they gave me a form fitted back brace, which was basically there to try to help my bones heal in the proper manner, so I didn't get the stoop, or forward lean that you see in a lot of people with back issues. I couldn't tolerate the pain to wear it, but wish I had. Thats about the only thing I wish I had been able to tolerate a little better back in my painful days.
Best of luck, keep fighting, you will soon have the darker days behind you.
Eric T
First of all, I'm really sorry about what you and your boyfriend are going through, but want to say at least in my position I was able to get through something pretty similar.
I had 8 compression fractures back in spring of 2010, and completely understand the pain your boyfriend is going through. Its excruciating, and for at least a couple weeks I remember there was no pain medicine that would help, the only thing I could do was sit there, and try desperately not to move, but even that hurt.
The healing did begin, however, and over time I underwent several different chemo regiments, and gradually was able to start to walk. After that, went through a stem cell transplant, was successful, but still had to wear a fentanyl patch in order to tolerate the pain that was still eminating from my back. I used a cane, sometimes a walker, and if a very short difference, would try to walk on my own. In early 2011, I underwent a kyphoplasty on L3/L4, which ended up hurting like the dickens at first, but a week later I began the process of getting off the Fentanyl, and after six weeks, was walking on my own, with no pain meds. I skiied the following winter, and while I'm not the athlete I once was, get to do most everything I would like to do.
So, long story short, there IS hope. The road your boyfriend is travelling is a painful one, and I would do most anything to take away the pain he is about to go through, but it will get better, and if you hadn't noticed, I'm a big proponent of kyphoplasty, for me it was a miracle worker. Start looking early for a neurosurgeon who would perform the procedure, they won't be able to right away until the cancer is gone, but getting someone on board soon should help. If you run into a neurosurgeon who says no, move on, and keep moving on until you find a good one who will.
One last suggestion, after the first couple weeks in the hospital, they gave me a form fitted back brace, which was basically there to try to help my bones heal in the proper manner, so I didn't get the stoop, or forward lean that you see in a lot of people with back issues. I couldn't tolerate the pain to wear it, but wish I had. Thats about the only thing I wish I had been able to tolerate a little better back in my painful days.
Best of luck, keep fighting, you will soon have the darker days behind you.
Eric T
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EricT
Re: Multiple compressed fractures and torn ligament on the b
Thank you for the replies. He is not taking chemo yet. His medicare D plan starts today. Hopefully, the chemo will start soon. He's still in the hospital after one week, still heavily medicated. Has been able to barely walk with a walker twice. I have the feeling the hospital is trying to push him to leave. Unfortunately, I don't know where he will go since he lives alone. I cannot take care of him in this condition as I work and I also have a small grandson at home. It's painful to say to someone you care for that they need more care than you can provide. I'm hoping his son will speak to the social worker and find a rehab center or nursing home that allows chemo patients until he can be more independent.
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