I am on elotuzumab, dexamethasone, and pomalidomide now. I am in my second cycle. It’s been working great. My CBC is better than it’s been in years. Here are my most recent results in graph form.
Category: Life
Life
Next month, I’ll start the CAR T-Cell therapy process with CARVYKTI®. I’ll start by having a vascath inserted. We used to just call these “Hickmans,” which is a brand name, no matter who made them. This is what a central venous catheter looks like: https://myeloma.blog/this-is-a-neostar-triple-lumen-catheter/ and this is what a Hickman looks like: https://myeloma.blog/hickman-catheter/.
Anyway, my first encounter will be in January. I’ll have the catheter inserted and then will have leukapheresis. After that, my T cells will be shipped off to a lab to be engineered to fight myeloma. Next, the T cells will be multiplied. After that (a procedure that can take two to several weeks), the T cells will be shipped back to the hospital. The next thing I’ll have to do is undergo three days of chemo: fludarabine and cyclophosphamide.
The CARVYKTI® website describes the process best.
I’ll update as often as I can.
GRYT Health is looking for relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma patients to share their experience. Participants will be asked to complete two virtual research engagements: a 10-minute survey and a 90-minute interview. If you are interested in learning more about this research and/or participating, please visit our study webpage HERE or contact us at projects@grythealth.com.
I’ve had two doses of Evusheld during the last month or so. After my initial injections, there was an advisory from the CDC to get a second set of injections. It’s thought one dose isn’t effective enough.
Evusheld is Astra-Zeneca’s pre-exposure prophylaxis for covid.
I keep reading that people seem to be unaware of its existence, and it’s sitting in stock rooms and pharmacies unused. At the same time, there are news articles saying it’s hard to get. I didn’t have any trouble getting it where I receive treatment
I haven’t posted any updates lately. The reason is, after having had MM for so long, I just don’t think about it very much. It’s not like it was in the beginning. I used to wake up every day, and that was the first thing I’d think about. That was 2003. It’s just a part of my life now. I’ve been very fortunate to have had few problems.
In January I started on Darzalex, Revlimid and dex. I’d taken Revlimid before, in 2006. You can read all of my previous posts about Revlimid here: https://myeloma.blog/?s=Revlimid. I have not tolerated it well, so I stopped taking it at the end of January. In fact, I felt so miserable that when it came to taking that last pill in the bottle, I couldn’t make myself do it. Revlimid causes me to have some really awful GI issues. I think I can understand what people must go through when they have IBS or similar afflictions. Revlimid causes me to have GI cramps, diarrhea, constipation, and some nausea. That was at a 25 mg per day dose. I may be trying a 15 mg per day dose soon.
The reason I may be trying a lower dose is that Darzalex as a single agent (with 20 mg of dex) has not held my MM back. Dara (Darzalex or daratumumab), Rev & dex did a great job up front, though. But since I stopped Rev, the numbers have started climbing.
My doctor wants to try to get me on Pomalyst. In January, we were told that my insurance would not pay for Pom at the same time I’m getting dara. It’s considered an off label use of the combination. He says he thinks he can get it approved this time. If it doesn’t happen, I’ll use 15 mg of Rev.
This is my cat, Peeps, taking a snooze on the back porch on a sunny October day. Peeps has been with me for a few years now. She showed up at my house one winter. I called her Peeps because she used to stand up at the door and peep into the house through the windows. She ran away from me whenever I tried to approach her at first. Not anymore! Now she comes running whenever she sees me or when I call for her. She’s an amazing and wonderful cat!
I was going through papers a few nights ago, when I discovered the handwritten notes that Dr. Richardson (Dana-Farber) had written while I sat in an exam room, there in Boston, in March of 2003. That was 11 years ago. I remember him telling me, “We hope to get you to your 50th birthday — and beyond.” At the time, I was 41 years old. 9 years seemed like a long time. Well, that 9 years has come and gone. I’ve known about my myeloma for more than 11 years now, and have been treatment free since 2007. With the exception of quarterly Zometa.
What have I learned in the last 11 years? Lots of things. Most important among them is that no two people will have identical experiences with their myeloma disease process or treatment in the aggregate.
If someone asks me what a stem cell transplant is like, I can only tell them about MY experience. Even if you have IgA lambda MM, and start off with the same lab values I had, and then use the exact same treatments I did, I doubt that you’d have the same experiences or outcomes. We’re just all different. When people ask me what I did to last so long, all I can say is, “I have no idea.” Is it because I waited, and had the SCT later? I don’t know!
The second most important thing I’ve learned is that no other patient or caregiver is the expert, where I’m concerned. Nobody can tell me anything I already don’t know about how to live with my myeloma. At first, I was scared of treatment side effects and procedures. I wanted to know what other people thought and did. I frequently asked, over and over again, things such as, “What do you do for your peripheral neuropathy?” And, “Do you have a sedative before your bone marrow biopsies?” The answers to these questions did help me at first. I had to find my own way, though. I’ve been lucky enough to live long enough to keep trying different things.
At this point, I’m annoyed by people who push their opinions about the “best way” to do this or that. It’s good to know about all of your options. Just remember that no other person has your best interest in mind the way you do, or the way your loved ones would. And, sometimes, you’re going to disagree with even them. Heck, yeah!
I guess I’m just trying to say that there’s no easy answer to the questions you have about what to do when you find out you have myeloma.
Here’s a short list of some things that I’ve found helpful over the years.
- When you’re on chemo, take the anti-emetics your doctor prescribes. If they’re not working for you, ask for something different. Don’t stop bugging your treatment team until you get something that helps.
- Likewise, if you have pain, keep agitating for relief.
- For covering a Hickman or Neostar central venous catheter for showering, Glad Press-n-Seal is the best!
- Get plenty of rest and drink plenty of fluids. Make sure your doctor recommends proper fluid intake for you, especially if you have impaired kidney function.
- Have fun as much as is possible for you. Just don’t hurt yourself.
- Try to laugh.
Hang in there, everyone.