Multiple Myeloma

Multiple myeloma is a cancer of the plasma cells, which are a type of white blood cell in the bone marrow. When someone has myeloma, the cancerous cells overwhelm the healthy bone marrow, reducing its ability to produce normal blood cells. It is usually complications arising from this behaviour that affects the patient most, with frequent infections causing repeated hospital visits.

Dad was diagnosed with myeloma in October 2016, after a bout of unusual ill health, something Dad was not accustomed to. For most of Dad’s life he was rarely struck down with infections like cold or flu, but found in mid 2016 that he had a cold he could not shake. This was an early sign of his immune system being under stress.

In October he found himself struggling to breathe and very lethargic, and was admitted to hospital. Blood tests revealed he had high amounts of paraproteins, indicative of myeloma, in addition to low counts for all main blood cells. A bone marrow biopsy confirmed his diagnosis.

After diagnosis, Dad was treated with a round of chemotherapy to control the myeloma, then given an autologous stem cell treatment to rebuild his bone marrow. It was successful in giving him nearly two years of remission. But by early 2019 there were signs of the myeloma returning. His cancer had evolved in response to the first round of treatment and therefore could only be managed with a different course of chemotherapy, where remission was a lower likelihood.

This kept Dad going until September 2020, when he became transfusion dependent and highly prone to infections, with signs that his bone marrow had failed. A final infection in October could not be overcome, and Dad died 25 October 2020.

Research

Had Dad not had access to the treatments available he would have died within six months of diagnosis. The extra three and half years he was granted allowed him to see his second son Chris get married and welcome three more grandchildren.

The research into myeloma has improved longevity and quality of life for those suffering from it. Dad not only lived longer than he would have otherwise, but his quality of life while in remission was almost as good as pre-diagnosis.

Ongoing research may not only improve longevity and quality of life, but hopefully find a cure. If you are visiting Dad’s memorial please consider making a donation to Sydney Blood Cancer Research, by clicking the donate button on this page.