Search Results
Sandra
I'm a survivor of multiple myeloma and MDS. Now I just want to raise awareness for the cause its seriousness.
Having both these diseases is tough, but I'm trying to take it all in and The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society offers wonderful support.
Lab and Imaging Tests
Doctors use several different lab and imaging tests to help detect (diagnose) a blood cancer (leukemia, lymphoma, myeloma, myelodysplastic syndromes or myeloproliferative disease). You may need to undergo additional tests to confirm your diagnosis.
Once your diagnosis is confirmed, your doctor may need to test you for certain genetic, cellular or molecular characteristics that will help him or her treat your specific diagnosis.
Your doctor considers these test results along with information from your physical examination and detailed medical history to:
Jane
In 2008, I retired from teaching art, mostly because I was feeling tired all the time and didn’t want the program I was running to suffer because I couldn’t keep up. I figured it was old age. I was enjoying my first full year of retirement when I woke up with a backache. After two months of tests, in July 2010, I was diagnosed with multiple myeloma, a treatable but not yet curable blood cancer in the plasma cells of the bone marrow.
Suzanne
My mother was diagnosed with multiple myeloma (MM) in February 1987. She passed away in December 1997. I was diagnosed with MM in February 2017. My diagnosis was not only a surprise but daunting because I was my mother’s caregiver and experienced what she faced battling this disease. I’m currently undergoing treatment with the bispecific drug Teclistamab with success. The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS) has provided me with educational and financial assistance, so I greatly appreciate this organization.
Dr. Adams
Jerry M. Adams, Ph.D., leads an LLS Specialized Center of Research grant.
His team is investigating apoptosis, the nature process of cell death. When apoptosis goes wrong it can lead to proliferation of cancer cells. It cells fail to die when they are supposed to they can develop into leukemia, lymphoma or multiple myeloma, and become more resistant to treatment. To improve treatment, the team is studying new drugs, used either alone or in combination with other therapies, to flip on the cell death switch.
Vonshel
Hi, my name is Von, and back in 2008, I was diagnosed with breast cancer. I didn't want to die, but prayer and God sent me right to the perfect doctor: Dr. Moran from Brunswick, GA. I got through chemotherapy and radiation with a breeze, and I'm now in remission for 13 years.
Andreas Strasser, Ph.D., MSc, FAA
A Pioneering Researcher Developing Targeted Therapies for Leukemia, Lymphoma and Myeloma
A cancer researcher trained in cell biology, immunology and molecular oncology, Dr. Strasser has made major contributions leading to discoveries that have found that defects in cell death can cause cancer and impair responses to chemotherapy. With this knowledge, his research team is able to develop new treatments.
Mike
My personal story with blood cancer started in 2020 but nobody really knew how long it was brewing. A day came when back spasms started raging and my Primary Care Physician (PCP) sent me to physical therapy (PT). It didn’t take more than 1 visit to PT to know that was a bust and finally my PCP sent me to the Hematologist. This is where my blood cancer story becomes reality, in no more than 5 minutes, the Hematologist sent me directly to the Huntsman Cancer Institute.
All-in-one for myeloma: a single therapy to combine CAR T cells and bispecific antibodies to engage both innate and adaptive immune responses
This project is designed to develop a novel cell therapy to treat relapse/refractory multiple myeloma (MM), an incurable cancer. We target BCMA, a protein highly expressed on MM compared to normal cells, with CAR T cells that also secrete a bispecific antibody that can engage all cytolytic cells, including various endogenous T cells, natural killer (NK) cells, and NKT cells to kill MM cells. We aim to complete all preclinical studies so that the therapy is ready for future clinical studies.
Amanda
Amanda was a Woman of the Year candidate this past spring, raising over $186,000 for The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS).
She is a multiple myeloma (MM) survivor and just received the newly approved for MM, CAR-T cell treatment, 5 days before the fundraising campaign finale.
LLS first met Amanda when she was pushed through the front doors of the office in her local region, in a wheelchair.
Diagnosis
An accurate diagnosis is one of the most important aspects of a person’s medical care. Obtaining a precise diagnosis will help the doctor to:
- Estimate how the disease will progress
- Determine the appropriate treatment
The results of blood tests that accompany periodic medical examinations may indicate the need for further evaluation for myeloma. These include an elevated protein level, anemia and abnormalities in kidney function or calcium levels.
Ilse
Thirty years ago I was told I needed additional blood tests after a routine check-up. I was too busy to follow those instructions. Looking back, it probably was an excuse not to have to face the truth. My fatigue and many infections I had attributed to stress in my personal life. I convinced myself there was nothing to worry about.
Damion
In 2020, at the age of 36, I was diagnosed with multiple myeloma (MM). To say this was out of left field would be an understatement. Historically, MM has been recognized as a blood cancer that impacts older patients. That research may be changing. Also, MM disproportionally affects African Americans. At the time of my diagnosis, I was a pretty healthy guy. I tried to eat right and even played in two basketball leagues each week. When I went to the doctor with stomach issues, I wasn't expecting to leave with a cancer diagnosis.
Cynthia
Cynthia was on a family vacation in 2015 when she began experiencing back pain so severe that she had to be in a wheelchair for the rest of the trip. When she returned home, Cynthia went to see her doctor who referred her to an oncologist. After several tests, Cynthia was diagnosed with multiple myeloma. She was devastated. Chemotherapy and radiation soon followed, along with horrible side effects, sleepless nights and countless blood transfusions. But Cynthia was not going to let cancer defeat her.
Yolanda
A general doctor’s appointment that included standard bloodwork changed my life in my thirties. I was planning a trip when my doctor came back with news of high protein levels and told me I should find a hematologist. It was when he contacted me twice to see if I found one that brought seriousness to the conversation. I chose a random doctor who told me I had multiple myeloma (MM), gave me a list of the dos and don’ts, and the drug I needed to be placed on.
Roy
Roy was diagnosed with multiple myeloma (MM) in February 2006. Throughout his treatment at Cedars Sinai, by Dr. Robert Vescio, he has conquered two relapses and is currently in partial remission. Upon his first diagnosis, Roy and his family found out that he had a lesion one inch away from his spine. The tumor was removed, broken ribs repaired, and only the 6 metal screws in his back remain of his first surgery.
Tony
I was diagnosed in 2016 with multiple myeloma (MM) and was able to get a bone marrow transplant in 2017. After I recovered, I was cancer-free for five years. Then two years ago, my cancer came back, and I am now going through with two types of therapies to keep things at bay and doing well. Besides the ups and downs of working full-time and cancer coming back, my oncologist who saw me through retired last December, and I got a new one. However I was not happy and started seeing one of his associates and really liked her, but she is now leaving the practice in two weeks.
Doug
I have always been a builder. Professionally, I am an architect. You could say that I’ve spent my life building spaces where people could grow. I never imagined, however, that I would someday have to rebuild my own. In February 2015, after experiencing months of excruciating and debilitating back pain that doctors mistakenly attributed to deteriorating lower lumbar discs, I had an MRI that revealed multiple vertebral compressed fractures.
Dugie
I was diagnosed with multiple myeloma (MM) five months after the death of our oldest son. A very odd pelvic pain sent me to a clinic where bloodwork and a CAT scan were performed. The CAT scan exposed a lesion on my rib. I made an appointment right away with an oncologist. He suspected MM but ran all the appropriate tests to confirm and stage my myeloma. At that time, my kappa light chains were around 1,800. I qualified for the VRD treatment regimen followed by an autologous stem cell transplant. My transplant was on August 17, 2019.
Tamila
I’m a mother of two diagnosed with multiple myeloma (MM) in May 2022. I'm still terrified and haven't come to an understanding of how I got this type of cancer. My grandmother and aunt passed away from colon and bladder cancer years ago. I don't have support from my family, which has been very difficult for me. I worry about my boys a lot, who are 17 and 15. I'm burned out all the time mentally, emotionally, and physically. How does one find the strength to go on? My faith in God tells me every day not to give up, yet, I've been through so much already before my cancer.
Ed
Like many who get diagnosed with multiple myeloma (MM), it comes out of nowhere. For me, it was mysterious aches and pains that crept up quickly. An alert doctor ordered tests, and eventually, MGUS, the precursor of MM, was first diagnosed. Within a month, MM was confirmed. MM is a blood/bone cancer that can affect the entire body.
For the next six months, I was involved in many tests, along with drug treatments including chemo. I had a stem cell transplant and have generally had a complete response.
Tina
In 2013 I was diagnosed with multiple myeloma and cardiac amyloidosis and that is when my journey began. I fought them two with chemotherapy which put it in remission, and as of today I am still in remission thank god.
Jamie
After he was diagnosed with blood cancer in 2013, Jamie was told by doctors that he’d never walk again, let alone ride a bike. Despite those predictions, he finished a 540-mile ride in June 2019 to raise money for The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS).
Dan
My name is Dan. I was first diagnosed with multiple myeloma (MM). After a battery of excruciating, painful biopsies and bloodwork, my doctors prescribed chemotherapy and Velcade once a week, then twice a month. My myeloma numbers were going way down, and my platelet count was diving straight to the bottom, single digits. My routine appointments with my doctor not in my city were going south. The doctor told me to stop taking all my cancer medications. What was happening to me was my MM was completely going into leukemia, a disease called myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS).
Lynn
I was diagnosed on Halloween 2008 with smoldering multiple myeloma (SMM). By 2011, I needed a stem cell transplant. After about a year and a half, I started on maintenance drugs. I started out with Velcade and progressed over the years to immunotherapy drugs.
I had very few side effects from these drugs and had remained strong and active, but everything started to catch up with me in 2021. I was deemed to be a good candidate for CAR-T-cell therapy, and in February of 2022, I was admitted for treatment.