You may remember from my first column ^[1] the strange events going on with me in the spring of 2009 that culminated in a bad fall and back injuries in July of the same year.

We got X-rays taken after the fall that showed four vertebral fractures, one in the upper and three in the lower back. Probably the worst one was from the fall. All were compression fractures, which are seen in cases of osteoporosis. That was the diagnosis I had received six months earlier, and I was already on medica­tions for that condition.

The pain in my back was very intense, and I was bedridden for 10 days, taking narcotic pain meds. It was very discouraging. My wonderful family rallied around and got me through those painful days. My husband obtained a walker for me, which allowed me to ambulate around the house.

By that point, it was beautiful summer weather, but I was mostly indoors. I had to watch Calgary's Stampede Parade on TV and saw the pipe band marching along playing 'Scotland the Brave.' I gradually began to heal up around the broken vertebrae, and after six weeks was well enough again to take two-kilometer walks outdoors, using the walker for support.

In July, after the injuries occurred, my doctor had also ordered some blood tests including screenings for excess calcium in the blood, creatinine, and protein in the blood and urine. The protein tests were high, but the rest were normal. The results were quite puzzling.

One of my daughters, a medical student at the University of Calgary at the time, had recently covered the unit on the skeletal system. She and my husband, a medical doctor, went over the notes thoroughly. I remember my girl saying, “There is another blood test that Mom needs!” Her statement to me stands out as a 'Eureka' moment for the diagnosis!

So, over to the lab we went for another test. I was still pretty sore, and this was about the fourth trip I had to take to the lab. As you can imagine, I was not mad keen to go out again to get my blood taken.

This last test was an immunoglobulin test, plasma electrophoresis. The results showed very high levels of gamma globulin and a “spike” in monoclonal proteins, also called M-spike.

We then got an appointment with a hematological oncologist. He told me he thought I had a bone marrow disease called “multiple myeloma.”

He performed a bone marrow aspiration, with local anesthesia, on my left pelvic bone to extract marrow cells to be examined under a microscope. That hurt. Luckily, it was a quick procedure.

He also left with me a requisition for X-rays from my head to the top of my knees, more blood tests, and instructions to collect all my urine in a jug for 24 hours.

I completed those tests and then went on a week-long holiday with my husband and our daughters to Las Vegas, which we had booked earlier in the year. I took the walker along, and we enjoyed shopping, eating at restaurants, and seeing the show “The Lion King.” The trip was the highlight of that summer for us.

Upon our return to Calgary, we met with our oncologist to discuss the bone marrow biopsy and the other tests.

The good news was that I did not seem to have any other fractures or broken bones beyond the first four.

The bad news was that my blood tests showed some anemia and the M-spike. The bone marrow was 50 percent full of mutated plasma cells, which left no doubt of the diagnosis: multiple myeloma.

Having now had all this evidence revealed to me, my nervous system took over and I almost fainted away. However, putting my head down between my knees, I took a glass of water to steady myself.

Life had changed, and I was now a cancer patient! I was in the hands of the medical profession for now.

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I will be including quotations at the end of each of my columns going forward. The quotation for this month is from Hippocrates, who wrote “Prayer indeed is good, but while calling on the gods, a man should lend himself a hand.”