My name is Jim Joseph. I have multiple myeloma, a blood cancer. The purpose of this blog is to record my thoughts, feelings and experiences as I go through treatment. It also is an easy way to keep friends and family abreast of what's going on. If it helps someone else who is experiencing this, or their family, that is a bonus.
There are definitely far worse cancers to have than multiple myeloma (MM). The advances in treatment have been incredible, even during the short time I have been dealing with this.
MM occurs when a type of white blood cell called a plasma cell becomes cancerous and starts multiplying far more than it should. That crowds out good cells, like the red ones. I have no idea what triggers this. Bad juju, I guess. Here is a really nice article from Cure magazine that explains it all in layperson’s language. (Cure magazine is free and aimed at people with cancer; well worth getting.)
Who I am
I am 73 years old, white, in good health otherwise and work full-time from home. I have never smoked or used drugs, but I have a great liking of bourbon, craft beer and, well, everything else. Because of high cholesterol, we have had a very good diet for decades, and over the last several years, really cut down on red meat. Fortunately, a dull medical history. (My mother died of lymphoma, but she was in her 90s and had six good years after chemo. She totally expected to live to 102, like her mother.)
An innocuous start
In 2023, I went in for a regular physical and the blood tests showed something was off in my kidney function. As it turned out, over the years I had never had a renal panel, which should have been standard. It would have detected things going haywire and, at the least, given me a starting point for this disease. I was sent to a nephrologist (kidney specialist), who did more bloodwork and decided I needed to see a hemotologist (blood cancer doc).
More blood tests, a bone marrow biopsy and a PET scan followed. The diagnosis was smoldering multiple myeloma. “Smoldering” sounds like some cool George Clooney-type thing, but that is the actual term they use to describe when you have a form of cancer but it is just sitting there, not doing anything. (“Lurking” would be appropriate, but scary and not at all Clooneyish.) The protocol is called watchful waiting — keep an eye on things. Sometimes it becomes active, but sometimes nothing ever happens. My wife experienced this with follicular lymphoma. After 10 years they said she was in the clear and needn’t come back. Smartly, she still does anyway.
Watchful waiting is exactly what it sounds like. Life goes on as usual. You look the same, sound the same; no one knows what is up unless you tell them. It’s a great time to make some healthy life choices, which I did about halfway. It’s easy to tell yourself nothing will ever happen.
That’s my introduction and that’s it for today.