The media often does stories about people who have lived at least one hundred years.  What is their secret?  Are these centenarians—as they are called—simply lucky, or do they share commonalities that might help others live longer?

The answer is yes.  Yes they are lucky.  And yes, many have certain things in common.

These common traits include staying active, a family history of longevity, commitment to family, friends and/or their community, and a positive attitude or innate ability to deal with stress.

I like to ask multiple myeloma survivors a variety of questions about their lives since their myeloma diagnosis.  Sometimes I come right out and ask them,  “Why do you think you have been able to survive so long?”

Like centenarians, long-lived multiple myeloma survivors tend to have a lot in common.  Most stay active, have a strong connection to friends and family, and have a positive attitude or innate ability to cope with life with cancer.

One of my dear friends, Karl Vollstedt, has lived with multiple myeloma for over eight years.

And I have met survivors who have lived a lot longer than that!  Ten years isn’t uncommon.  I sat next to a 14-year survivor at a conference last year.  I took an airport shuttle with an 18-year survivor a few years back.

While I was at the American Society of Hematology meeting this past December, I had the opportunity to speak with two people—one man and one woman—who had both lived over 20 years since they were first diagnosed with myeloma.  20 YEARS!

One of these survivors had even lived that long without undergoing a stem cell transplant.  Both are currently active and living relatively normal lives.  AMAZING!

So what is their secret?  I’m not saying that we have ultimate control over our fates.  Of course the aggressiveness of our myeloma probably has a large impact on our outcomes.  But there are a number of things I have noticed long-term myeloma survivors tend to have in common:

• All that I know have used a wide variety of therapies throughout the course of their disease
• All have had set-backs, often serious
• All are self-educated about multiple myeloma treatment options, and are actively involved with their treatment
• All have strong health care teams and support from friends and family
• Most, but not all, have had strong caregiver support from a spouse
• Most have also had to deal with other serious, but unrelated, health issues
• All have faced unexpected complications, fought hard, and come out smiling on the other side
• All have had—and continue to have—a strong will to LIVE!

Next week I will take a closer look at these commonalities and share some advice from these multiple myeloma “centenarians.”

Feel good and keep smiling!  Pat