It's Ba-a-a-ck! - November 18 thru December 5

Well, crud.  I had hoped (and expected) to get several years of remission out of the stem cell transplant done in May, but the monster has reared its ugly head already.  When I had the 3-month followup back in August, everything looked good.  But at the 6-month followup a couple of weeks ago, I was told that a couple of lab results are now out of the normal range, in essence showing that the myeloma has already started progressing.  I need to start a drug therapy, and I won't be able to have another transplant using my own stem cells although there is a slight possibility of a transplant using a donor's stem cells in the distant future.  I think a match is very unlikely and that procedure is pretty risky to boot.  So for now I'm concentrating on the drug therapy.


So Monday I start getting a twice-weekly infusion of a drug called Velcade.  I go for two weeks then get one week off for recovery.  It may not technically be labeled as a chemotherapy but I'm calling it that.  It has a lot of the possible side effects like chemo, except that I won't lose hair.  It's called a "proteasome inhibitor" and causes cell damage.  Somehow normal cells recover but cancer cells die, in theory.  Actually the response rates look pretty good in a couple of studies I've read about, but the complete remission rate is pretty small.  The plan is to knock back the myeloma with Velcade, then try to contain it with Revlimid.  I took Revlimid for about six months prior to the transplant and the results were very good with few side effects.  No one knows how long I'll be on the Velcade but it's apparent that it will at least three months and probably several more months after that.  


This is really frustrating since I'm now feeling the best in almost two years, with no pains and a lot  of my strength and energy coming back.  I'm just hoping this stuff doesn't cause too many problems and I can travel and do some work around the house.  So the fun starts Monday.  I'll write up anything interesting that happens.  Check back later!