Yesterday was a rainy Sunday in Georgia – the kind of day that’s perfect for an afternoon nap, or a movie marathon.  For me, it was a very rare day, one with nothing on my agenda.  So, it was a great time for puttering around the house.

In attempting to clean my home office, which honestly is approaching the type of chaos seen on “Hoarders,” I came across many multiple myeloma articles and other cancer-related clippings gathered since my sister Deana’s myeloma diagnosis 14 months ago.  For the moment, I am putting …

I have taken a few months off from writing my column to deal with my multiple myeloma health issues and to sort out my next steps.

Most of The Myeloma Beacon’s columnists are upbeat, positive, or even humorous.  I was feeling none of those things.  Most of the emotions I was having were too unsettled, confusing, and raw to write about.

The last few months have been a roller coaster of ups and downs.  At least for now, the dust does seem to be settling somewhat and I felt it was time …

Do you remember reading about or watching the video of Randy Pausch a few years back?  He’s the dynamic Carnegie Mellon professor who became famous after he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer — and then gave an incredible lecture, “The Last Lecture,” about his impending death.  A video of his talk went viral — before viral was even cool.

Randy lived and died with such grace that it is easy to forget that he had a wife and caregiver, Jai, who stood by his side until the very end.

Like most …

As you may remember from my previous column, I was admitted to the hospital for my stem cell transplant at the beginning of March (on March 5 to be exact).

I had no initial devastating reaction to the melphalan (Alkeran) that I received on the day of admission or the infusion of my stem cells over the following two days.

While my first 10 to 11 days were certainly not pleasant, they weren’t “off the charts” bad either. For the first week, I was allowed to walk in the corridors …

More and more reports have been in the news about the rising number of people living alone in America and other Western countries.

According to Eric Klinenberg’s research in his book, “Going Solo,” 28 percent of all American households and one in ten people over age 65 live alone, more than ever before in history.

While the circumstances leading to this lifestyle vary, the impact is significant for those diagnosed with multiple myeloma, as well as their circle of family and friends.

Adults transition in and out of living alone and with …

I thought I’d tell a little story related to an aspergillus fungal infection that beset me before my first stem cell transplant.

What I’m going to recount here has less to do with the fungal infection than it is a cautionary tale.

In a dark way, this story can be somewhat amusing, but the absurdity only gets humorous in the retelling, not in the actual experience.

The aspergillus came along with something called bronchiolitis obliterans with organizing pneumonia, or BOOP.  That there’s even an illness that’s called BOOP is kind of funny …

It seems that one of the most common (and reviled) topics in the Beacon's columns and forums is dexa­meth­a­sone and its side effects.

For most of the 15 cycles I've been receiving treat­ment, I haven't had much in the way of side effects related to the dexamethasone (Decadron).  I certainly haven't experienced some of the significant issues that a lot of others have.

Recently however, the effects have been getting more noticeable.

Still, I hadn't planned on using it as a subject for a column, but as fate would have it, …