Brother has Multiple Myeloma, what next???

I just talked to my 75 year old brother and he has been diagnosed with Multiple Myeloma.  What can be expected.  He mentioned having chemotherapy soon, no schedule yet nor not sure what is going to be used.  Could anyone give their experiences so far.  Thanks

Dear Adipose:

It is pretty difficult to give an answer to your question -- there are soooo many variations of this disease and the disease and treatments tend to be different for each of us.

Can you give us a little more information about your brother?  What symptoms has been having?  What tests have they done and what are the results?  Have they told him the "type" of myeloma he has?  Have they discussed what treatment they want to give?  There are a lot of options.

Most people respond to early treatment and fortunately the drugs used today do not give some of the terrible side effects we all associate with cancer treatment.  Get as much information as you can about your brother's disease.  There is great information on line about myeloma at www.myeloma.org ;  www.multiplemyeloma.org and www.lls.org as well as a number of other sites.

Good luck,

Janet  

From Anna,

Hi adepose, Welcome to the group. Everyone is different and responds different. If they do chemo they will do it for a couple of weeks then give him a week break. That's how it goes with some.  Its gone that way with my Dad.  Dad also took chemo for a longer time so you see why I said what I did. His age and overall health my play into things to.  

Your friend,

Anna

Hi Adepose,

My mum is in the same point in her discovery/MM journey. Just diagnosed. I met with her doctor and her last week and they're starting her on the MPT... Melpholan/Prednisone/Thalidomide cocktail. (if not Thal. then Revlimid... depends which group she is randomly assigned to...). It's an oral chemotherapy blend with the pred/steroid component which by itself would do some good but in combination does the most good to bring the myeloma under control.

After 75 they are not candidates for Stem Cell Transplant, but if they can tolerate the chemo and withstand the side-effects of the steroid, they can hope for a manageable yet chronic condition. (These are the side effects we're going to be watching out for: neuropathy, blood sugar issues, loss of muscle mass.)

We know people in their 70's and 80's who have had it for 10-15 years. If your father, like my mother, was very tired and anemic but not yet experiencing bone pain, they may be lucky that it was caught early enough. We're hoping Mum will be around for a while!

Hope that helps a little, but it's all individual of course.

Best to your family,

Sarah

Oops sorry it was your brother not your father. But he's about the same age as Mum who's 81.

Best wishes,

Sarah

Hello Adepose,

Sarah has given you excellent advice for your brother's situation.  If you want to learn more about his condition then use Google and look for the International Myeloma Foundation (IMF).  They have put together a large package of FREE information -- which clearly explains exactly what Myeloma is and all of the treatments available together with very useful information on various therapies and strategies for dealing with side effects etc.  All you have to do is to order them and they will arrive within 2 weeks of the order.  You can also be put on their mailing list which will keep you up to date with the latest discoveries and treatments available.  Good luck, don't worry too much because although Myeloma is considered to be a 'terminal' cancer, the current treatments mean that most people are surviving for well over 5 years from diagnosis and since his major symptom was tiredness you'll probably find that as soon as he starts treatment he will regain much of his original energy and stamina and he won't develop bone lesions!  Best wishes to you both, Cath

From Anna,

Hi Sarah, My Dad has had MM for almost 11 years now. He was 3 days from his 55th birthday when they found it. He is always tired and has had bone pain for years. He's been on pain med's for years.  He's had 2 stem cell transplants. He's been though a lot but considering all that he's doing pretty good.

Your friend,

Anna