Starting my Mainteance therapy today, 3 more sessions, then I'm off for 3 months. I'm starting to understand minimum residual disease better. So I believe that I'm in a good place, as the doctors can be proactive not reactive. MRD is not a relapse, but traces of the disease, still found in my blood. My treatment regime will be one cycle for every 3 months, and I guess will stop, when my MRD is 0. There are some interesting initiatives by the International Myeloma Foundation, which I'll post, for those interested.
My cycling training is going well, except I picked up a bit of a cold, hope it goes over quickly. All on track for the Sani2c.
Jude 1:24-25
Doxology
24 Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy, to the only God, our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion, and authority, before all time and now and forever. Amen.
Friday 19 April 2013
Monday 15 April 2013
MRD & Sani2C
The Sani2c mountain bike race is exactly a months time. Adriaan (my cycling buddy) and I have been up early in the now cold mornings, getting km's below our belts for the up and coming cycling event. I really look forward to it. It will be a great achievement for me, and something worth aiming for. It will also kinda be like a full circle, being able to get to a point where I was, prior to my diagnosis.
I was reading the headlines of some of the mm blogs, and one guy's blog reads, "have you climbed any mountains recently?" I guess for me, there is more than one.
So what about MRD, something new that I have learned. Earlier this year I had a normal bone marrow test, which still showed that I was clean. My doctor's rooms have subsequently acquired the newest testing equipment, which I understand now meets the international testing standards for MM. The flow cytometry test is for a million cells. My results recently came back, and shows 0,01% myeloma cells. The doctors are testing for minimum residual disease (mrd). Based on these results I will have to go onto maintenance therapy. The standard international treatment would be revlimid, or lenalidomide. These are not yet available in SA, and so I will be going back onto valcade, with one cycle every 3 months. I understand that this will be until my MRD is 0%.
I have been on valcade before, and has worked very well for me, so I don't anticipate huge problems. I have been following the IMF website, and there are so many advances in research and a push for a cure.... At the end of the day, my hope is in the Lord above, the maker of heaven and earth! Shalom!
I was reading the headlines of some of the mm blogs, and one guy's blog reads, "have you climbed any mountains recently?" I guess for me, there is more than one.
So what about MRD, something new that I have learned. Earlier this year I had a normal bone marrow test, which still showed that I was clean. My doctor's rooms have subsequently acquired the newest testing equipment, which I understand now meets the international testing standards for MM. The flow cytometry test is for a million cells. My results recently came back, and shows 0,01% myeloma cells. The doctors are testing for minimum residual disease (mrd). Based on these results I will have to go onto maintenance therapy. The standard international treatment would be revlimid, or lenalidomide. These are not yet available in SA, and so I will be going back onto valcade, with one cycle every 3 months. I understand that this will be until my MRD is 0%.
I have been on valcade before, and has worked very well for me, so I don't anticipate huge problems. I have been following the IMF website, and there are so many advances in research and a push for a cure.... At the end of the day, my hope is in the Lord above, the maker of heaven and earth! Shalom!
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