Health ConditionsCancerMultiple Myeloma

Multiple Myeloma

Multiple myeloma is a cancer that forms in plasma cells, a type of white blood cell in your bone marrow. You might experience bone pain, appetite loss, unwanted weight loss, fatigue, weakness, frequent infections, anemia, and increased bleeding. Treatment includes chemotherapy, stem cell transplants, and targeted therapies.

Maintaining a healthy diet, quitting smoking, exercising (with medical advice), getting enough rest, and looking after your emotional health can support your overall well-being with multiple myeloma. Reducing your risk of infection is crucial.

Common Questions & Answers

What causes multiple myeloma?

The exact cause of multiple myeloma is unknown, but it involves abnormal plasma cell growth. Specific genetic mutations may contribute to its development. Exposure to radiation and certain chemicals, inflammatory diseases, and obesity may increase your risk of multiple myeloma.

A family history might increase myeloma risk, especially in siblings or parents. However, while certain genetic mutations may increase a person’s multiple myeloma risk, doctors don’t consider it hereditary, as family members don’t directly pass it down.
Different staging systems like the Revised International Staging System and Durie-Salmon Staging System help describe how advanced or aggressive multiple myeloma is using blood and genetic test results. Each system has stages 1 to 3, with 3 being the most advanced.
While multiple myeloma isn’t curable, treatment aims to significantly extend lifespan and improve quality of life. People can enter remission, when signs or symptoms of multiple myeloma are absent, and remain in that state for a long time.
Multiple myeloma treatments include chemotherapy, immunotherapy, targeted drugs, and steroids to counter inflammation. Doctors also use stem cell transplants and radiation therapy for multiple myeloma treatment, and clinical trials examining experimental therapies may help in the future.
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Resources
  1. Understanding Multiple Myeloma. Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation.
  2. Multiple Myeloma. Cleveland Clinic. May 4, 2022.

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