Sharing Steve Mohr's Blog: Worst part of having Myeloma

sharing because this is so well put and a lot of how I feel.

http://www.myelomabeacon.com/headline/2015/08/21/mohrs-myeloma-musings-reflections/

Mohr’s Myeloma Musings: Reflections

7 CommentsBy Steve Mohr
Published: Aug 21, 2015 12:44 pm

During a recent conversation I had with a friend, he un­ex­pected­ly asked me what has been the worst part of having multiple myeloma. For­tu­nate­ly, his cell phone rang before I could answer the ques­tion. It saved me from giv­ing an answer to a ques­tion I have never given much thought to.

At various times since then, I have reflected on what has been the worst aspect of living with multiple myeloma.

While I consider myself a reflective person, think­ing back on past ex­per­i­ences of living with this disease is some­thing I have avoided. My attitude has been to look forward, attempting to live as normal a life as possible.

For the most part, I have been able to do that because every treatment regimen I have undergone so far has been successful. I find it foolhardy to try and think ahead and anticipate what will happen next with this dis­ease and plot a course of action to deal with each possible scenario.

As I pondered my friend's question, though, I wondered if he wanted to know what the worst aspect was phys­i­cally, mentally, or emotionally.

Physically, this is an easy answer. I have stated several times in previous columns that the physical chal­lenges I have experienced with multiple myeloma pale in comparison to what many suffer from with this dis­ease. This was reinforced after I recently read Tom Brokaw's book, "A Good Life Interrupted," and learned of the debilitating back pain he endured. I have suffered nothing physically that comes close to compare to that.

Having said that, there is nothing that I have been through physically that compares to the first eight days of my autologous stem cell transplant experience in June 2014. I went in with a macho attitude of being able to handle anything that the procedure involved. I brazenly told my doctor beforehand that I would set a record (11 days) for the shortest hospital stay at my cancer center. Looking back, I now know what was behind his smile at my boastful prediction.

On about the fifth day I remember thinking that, if it was time for me to meet my maker, I was fully prepared to go. I was discharged after 16 days, the average stay for a patient undergoing a stem cell transplant.

Complete recovery from the physical effects of the stem cell transplant has been slower than I anticipated. It wasn't until this past May that I no longer had bouts of fatigue, and that the neuropathy subsided to barely being noticeable. I am thankful that I now feel better than I have since being diagnosed three and a half years ago.

While the worst of the physical effects of multiple myeloma are minimal and can be managed, such is not the case mentally and emotionally.

Mentally, my cognitive skills and abilities have not seen the recovery from the fog of chemo brain that I suf­fered during induction therapy and the stem cell transplant. I’m struggling to recall names and facts, deliver key points in public speaking engagements, focus on details of tasks, and generally concentrate for long periods of time. There is no history of dementia in my family, so I vainly blame it on the 10 mg of Revlimid(lenalidomide) I take daily as part of my maintenance therapy.

Emotionally, since being diagnosed with multiple myeloma, I have become far more concerned about what others think of me. This is a complete change in thinking for me. Through 29 years as a high school bas­ket­ball coach and six years as a school district superintendent before being diagnosed with myeloma, I de­vel­oped a pretty thick skin and could not afford to be overly concerned about what others thought of me. During the last three and half years, however, I have often wondered if others see me as less than whole, an invalid, contaminated. These questions of self-worth were reinforced when I learned that some of my staff, with the best of intentions, chose not to come to me as they should have to address issues because of what I was going through early in my treatment.

So, in summary, the answer to my friend’s simple, direct question is easy. For me, the worst part of living with multiple myeloma is the mental aspect, the decline in my cognitive skills.

While reflecting on my past and pondering my future, I need to point out that I’m doing far better now than I did before my diagnosis three and a half years ago. I am hopeful I will become a statistical exception to the prognosis of 8 to 10 years I was given then.

TIPS ON TALKING TO A CANCER PATIENT / SURVIVOR

I LIKE THIS ARTICLE FROM TODAY'S EVERETT HERALD

One thing I would add:

If you want to do something that would help

please offer a specific thing or two you are willing to do

rather than just telling the survivor to call you,

 --or that you will do anything. -- Really?

We know others have a life and are busy, too.

No way is it easy to request something

that may not be what someone is comfortable doing.

http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20150815/LIVING/150819614 --AUGUST 15, 2015

Tips on talking with someone who has cancer

By Mary Kay Jurovcik

Special to The Herald

There are times in our lives when we know exactly what to say.

When someone gets married or has a baby or graduates from college, we say, “Congratulations.” When we meet someone new, we say, “Nice to meet you.” When someone loses a loved one, we say, “I’m sorry for your loss.”

When someone is diagnosed with cancer, we often don’t know what to say. Just starting a conversation can be difficult because there is no presupposed way to talk to someone who has cancer.

It’s important to remember that the cancer survivor is still the same person you knew before, and much about that person has not changed. But even for someone who you are close to, discussing a cancer diagnosis and treatment isn’t likely something you have practiced.

I’d like to offer these tips on how to talk to someone who is living with cancer:

Let the survivor guide the conversation.

Some survivors will give you every detail about their diagnosis and treatment. Some would prefer to remain private about what’s happening to them.

I suggest following the survivor’s lead when it comes to discussing the details of the disease.

I’m quite open about my experience, but I know some survivors who consider the details of their diagnosis and treatment to be on a need-to-know basis.

If they say they are OK, they are OK.

My survivor friend Lauren says when she told people she was doing fine while in treatment, they didn’t believe her. They would press her by asking, “I mean, how are you really doing?”

If a survivor tells you she is doing OK, she probably means it. Maybe she is masking her true feelings for your sake, but I’d suggest taking her at face value. Sometimes, we just don’t feel like talking about it.

So…

Talk about something else.

One of the hardest things about cancer is that it takes over your whole life. Sometimes it’s the last thing in the world you want to talk about. Visiting with a survivor and talking about everything except cancer can be so helpful.

When I was in treatment, my friends sometimes worried about complaining or talking about mundane things. Often, there was nothing I wanted to hear about more than their regular, non-cancer lives.

Be careful of comparisons.

Pretty much everyone knows someone who’s had breast cancer, so when I discussed my diagnosis with others, they often wanted to tell me about the person in their lives who had the disease.

My friend Karen, also a survivor, remarked to me once that it was least helpful to hear stories about people who had passed from the disease.

While it’s natural to want to relate to the survivor by sharing other peoples’ experiences, remember that every patient, every person and every experience is different. The details of your neighbor’s or friend’s diagnosis and treatment might be quite different from the survivor you’re hearing from now.

Advice is great when it’s requested.

I got some wonderful advice while I was in treatment from other survivors and from friends and family. But, there is a lot of less helpful and misguided advice for cancer patients out there, too. If survivors are receiving treatment, they are being cared for by a team of medical professionals.

At Providence, we don’t just have oncologists. We have access to nutritionists, financial counselors, therapists, classes and support groups.

While sending articles about new treatments or ideas might seem helpful, it might be more than the survivor is able to process. Wait for the survivor to ask for advice, and if you choose to share something, be careful that it comes from a reputable source.

Sometimes the sun isn’t shining.

Especially when treatment ends, survivors are sometimes expected to just be “OK” — whatever that means. Survivorship can be hard, and it can be difficult to remain positive all the time. Even for generally cheery people, the weight of cancer can bring on the gray clouds.

Bear in mind that the survivor’s life has changed dramatically since his diagnosis. Accept that he might be blue sometimes, and that your support is still vitally important.

Be careful about minimizing the survivor’s feelings by offering artificially positive statements like, “It could be worse,” or “It will be better soon.” This may or may not be true, but it probably won’t improve the survivor’s mood.

Reach out.

I had many people tell me to reach out to them when I needed help, but while in treatment, I was so drained, just looking at my phone seemed like a colossal task. Don’t wait for the survivor to call you. Reach out to him or her. Call, text, show up (if that’s OK with the survivor). Treatment can be very isolating, and survivors often just need friends to come spend time.

Mary Kay Jurovcik is a Lake Stevens wife, mother, writer and breast cancer survivor. At the age of 33, with no family history or prior experience with cancer, she was diagnosed with stage 2B, HER2+ breast cancer. Jurovcik is documenting her journey on a personal website, BoldSurvivor.com, and contributes to the Providence Regional Cancer Partnership website.

HOW NOT TO SAY THE WRONG THING

A CONCRETE WAY TO THINK ABOUT WHAT WE ALL KNOW BUT  OFTEN STRUGGLE WITH--

from an LA Times article by Susan Silk: 

http://www.latimes.com/opinion/op-ed/la-oe-0407-silk-ring-theory-20130407-story.html

When Susan had breast cancer, we heard a lot of lame remarks, but our favorite came from one of Susan's colleagues. She wanted, she needed, to visit Susan after the surgery, but Susan didn't feel like having visitors, and she said so. Her colleague's response? "This isn't just about you."

"It's not?" Susan wondered. "My breast cancer is not about me? It's about you?"

The same theme came up again when our friend Katie had a brain aneurysm. She was in intensive care for a long time and finally got out and into a step-down unit. She was no longer covered with tubes and lines and monitors, but she was still in rough shape. A friend came and saw her and then stepped into the hall with Katie's husband, Pat. "I wasn't prepared for this," she told him. "I don't know if I can handle it."

This woman loves Katie, and she said what she did because the sight of Katie in this condition moved her so deeply. But it was the wrong thing to say. And it was wrong in the same way Susan's colleague's remark was wrong.

Susan has since developed a simple technique to help people avoid this mistake. It works for all kinds of crises: medical, legal, financial, romantic, even existential. She calls it the Ring Theory

Draw a circle. This is the center ring. In it, put the name of the person at the center of the current trauma. For Katie's aneurysm, that's Katie. Now draw a larger circle around the first one. In that ring put the name of the person next closest to the trauma. In the case of Katie's aneurysm, that was Katie's husband, Pat. Repeat the process as many times as you need to. In each larger ring put the next closest people. Parents and children before more distant relatives. Intimate friends in smaller rings, less intimate friends in larger ones. When you are done you have a Kvetching Order. One of Susan's patients found it useful to tape it to her refrigerator.

Here are the rules. The person in the center ring can say anything she wants to anyone, anywhere. She can kvetch and complain and whine and moan and curse the heavens and say, "Life is unfair" and "Why me?" That's the one payoff for being in the center ring.

Everyone else can say those things too, but only to people in larger rings. When you are talking to a person in a ring smaller than yours, someone closer to the center of the crisis, the goal is to help. Listening is often more helpful than talking. But if you're going to open your mouth, ask yourself if what you are about to say is likely to provide comfort and support. If it isn't, don't say it. Don't, for example, give advice. People who are suffering from trauma don't need advice. They need comfort and support. So say, "I'm sorry" or "This must really be hard for you" or "Can I bring you a pot roast?" Don't say, "You should hear what happened to me" or "Here's what I would do if I were you." And don't say, "This is really bringing me down."

If you want to scream or cry or complain, if you want to tell someone how shocked you are or how icky you feel, or whine about how it reminds you of all the terrible things that have happened to you lately, that's fine. It's a perfectly normal response. Just do it to someone in a bigger ring.

Comfort IN, dump OUT.

There was nothing wrong with Katie's friend saying she was not prepared for how horrible Katie looked, or even that she didn't think she could handle it. The mistake was that she said those things to Pat. She dumped IN.

Complaining to someone in a smaller ring than yours doesn't do either of you any good. On the other hand, being supportive to her principal caregiver may be the best thing you can do for the patient.

Most of us know this. Almost nobody would complain to the patient about how rotten she looks. Almost no one would say that looking at her makes them think of the fragility of life and their own closeness to death. In other words, we know enough not to dump into the center ring. Ring Theory merely expands that intuition and makes it more concrete:

Don't just avoid dumping into the center ring, avoid dumping into any ring smaller than your own.

Remember, you can say whatever you want if you just wait until you're talking to someone in a larger ring than yours.

And don't worry. You'll get your turn in the center ring. You can count on that.

Susan Silk is a clinical psychologist. Barry Goldman is an arbitrator and mediator and the author of "The Science of Settlement: Ideas for Negotiators."

THANK YOU! TO MY TEAM AND DONORS: 5K / 1 MILE RUN / WALK JUNE 28th 2015

So proud of my Team "RemissionMMPossible" today. 

big THANK YOUs to my Team and those donors who joined me in spirit. 

Together we raised about* $3000! 
( *some matching funds and other donations are still to come) 

What a fun day for me. 
I've never done a race or participated in a fundraising event before,
 nor had two others on the team.

There were speakers broadcasting music to to pump us up. A personal trainer/ gym owner led us in warm ups. Donated food, water, fruit, energy bars, lots of volunteers working to guide us in what to do and where to do it. Free Cancer cookbooks, origami cranes to make, Dr. Green from SCCA/ Fred Hutch spoke about the importance of Research and the role MoveMMORE has played. 

I can't wait to see all the pictures of the other teams 
soon to come on the MoveMMORE website. 

HELP US REACH THE GOAL

ONLY $205. TO GO! -----

WE MADE GOAL!!

----- to reach my fundraising goal which will allow me to tour the Research Labs at Fred Hutchinson / Seattle Cancer Care Alliance and have the opportunity to 

KILL an actual Myeloma cell! 

http://org.grouprev.com/judybracik

please donate online by June 27th 

and share this important fundraiser for Myeloma Research

CALLING ALL WALKERS, SPECTATORS, VOLUNTEERS, AND RUNNERS

CALLING ALL WALKERS, SPECTATORS, VOLUNTEERS, AND SERIOUS RUNNERS.

There is ONE WEEK  ONLY 2 DAYS  now to go until the 5 K Run / 1 Mile Walk on June 28th at Magnuson Park. 

Who has 2 hours on a Sunday morning to help raise funds for Multiple Myeloma Research at Fred Hutchinson? 

I know there are many very worthy causes out there but this is a cause very personal for me to help cure this damn Cancer! 

Please join us for a fun time. 

Bring your roller blades, walkers, wheelchairs, dogs, strollers, or even running shoes and meet some Myeloma Fighters and their families and friends. 

I am very close to achieving the goal that will allow me 

to tour the Research labs at Fred Hutchinson 

and have a chance to KILL an actual Myeloma cell! 

Please consider donating to this important research. 

http://org.grouprev.com/judybracikhttp://org.grouprev.com/judybracik

thank you for considering how to make a difference in our lives. 

Tips for visiting Cancer patients

http://cancerwife.com/content/tips-visiting-cancer-patients -- lots of good advice there.

It is very natural to show your care by a hug or handshake.

However, if cancer patients are immunosuppressed, any physical contact with them is not ideal.  It's best to just ask the patient if it's ok you give them a hug or hand shake: "Can I give you a hug?"  Remember that they are not trying to be unfriendly, they're just trying to stay germ-free and survive.

Cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy often have PICC lines in their arms or Ports in their breastbone area.  When giving a patient a hug, be aware of this.

ONLY TWO WEEKS TO GO TO REGISTER FOR THE 5K /1 MILE RUN/WALK TO BENEFIT MYELOMA RESEARCH AT FRED HUTCH

Only two weeks to go! there is still time to donate or register for the run/walk on June 28. at Magnuson Park.
Please help me reach my goal for fundraising towards Myeloma research at Fred Hutch which is where my stem cell transplant will take place this summer.

My team is "RemissionMMPossible"--information here: MoveMMORE Myeloma Fundraiser

TREES AND PLANTS NEED HOMES........

I have so many trees in pots that need to be rehomed.   They currently reside in Edmonds WA. 
I won't be able to keep them all watered in pots nor get them planted anywhere while I am undergoing chemotherapy and stem cell transplant this summer.

SUGGESTED  PRICES ARE LISTED, BUT PLEASE MAKE AN OFFER.

 Most are in very good condition,  but some need potted up a size, and a few* are struggling and need rehab: 

TREES AND SHRUBS: 

2 Fraxinus latifolia- native Oregon Ash- in very large pots, trees about 7 feet tall. $18.--(this is NOT the orange berried invasive mountain ash!)

1 Calocedrus decurrens, Incense Cedar, 5 feet tall. $ 10.  ON HOLD sold

1 Cornus nutalii, native dogwood. 5 feet. $8  

1 Cornus stolonifera, Red-Twig dogwood 5 ft. $ 7

1 Cornus controversa - green- not variegated, 5-6 ft. $ 8

*1 Cornus kousa-blooming  7 feet- $ 10  ON HOLD

*Magnolia - soulangeana- Saucer magnolia. kind of sprawly in the pot. $ 7.

*Calycanthus floridus- Carolina allspice $ 7.

Lots of vine maples, standard green japanese maples, also a red Norway Maple. 

2 Thuopsis dolobrata- Hiba cedar. 3-4 feet -$ 15.

1 Viburnum plicatum var. tomentosum 'Shasta'. $ 10  ON HOLD sold

1 Decaisnea fargesii - Blue Bean Tree-  6 ft. $ 8.

1  Lindera benzoin. - 5-6 ft.  $ 8.

1 clumping bamboo  $ 10

1 Holodiscus discolor- native ocean Spray. 3 ft. $ 7.

Mahonia aquafoliums  

several Western Red Cedars, hemlocks,  doug firs, Lawson cypress, ....

3 small, 1 ft., Abies amabilis, Silver Firs,   SOLD

3 small 1 ft.  Abies lasiocarpa, sub alpine firs   SOLD

PERENNIALS: 

4 Arisaema consanguineum  some are blooming, 4 inch pots, $ 5.

8 Diphylleia cymosa, 2 year seedlings, $ 2. 

3Tropaeolum speciosum - hardy climbing nasturtium- $ 3.

1 or 2 very large pots of Hosta Frances Williams - $ 8.

1 Persicaria 'Painter's Palette' $2

sword fern $3.

Carex 'Ice Dance' $3.

1 Ligularia dentata, Dark foliaged, $ 3. 

1 Dierama pulcherrimum- Angel's fishing Rod $3.

3 Hellebore starts $2. 
1 Chimonanthus praecox - Wintersweet- 1 gal. $ 3.

a couple small Agave plants, Jade plants, house plants, Echeverias, and other things like that from the Greenhouse. 

and others to be added as I round them up. 

Please email to arrange a time to come by:  hollows_hill@hotmail.com

Or call 425-478-4384 and leave a message if no answer. 

Please consider a donation to Fundraising for Myeloma Research
 at Fred Hutch in Seattle

 with the MoveMMORE 5K / 1 mile -  Run/ Walk 

on June 28th at Magnuson Park:  

http://org.grouprev.com/judybracik  

TWO DAYS LEFT TO REGISTER AT THE APRIL RATE FOR MOVEMMORE 5K

2 days left to register at the $25. April rate for the MMore Myeloma 5K/1Mile Run/Walk at Magnusen Park June 28th. 

Registration fee goes up to $30 in May. 

100% of registration and/ or donations goes to Fred Hutchinson for Myeloma Research.

It would be fun to have you all on my Team! the "Remission MM Possible" team. 
Details on my MMORE page:    http://org.grouprev.com/judybracik?saved=1

Team captain "Judy Bracik", password to register "swedish"

PLANT SALE PICTURES APRIL 2015

A few pictures of plant sale tables and shade plants getting in line for the tables.

PLANT LIST --- APRIL 2015

A HUGE THANK YOU to everyone who came and EMPTIED MY TABLES!!. 
There is only one flat of odds and ends of a few plants left. 

There are still a few Vine Maples, a Western Red Cedar, the Thujopsis, and Calocedrus. 

There are still a few dormant Arisaemas in the greenhouse, that will be available if they have survived.  I'll post here in the next few weeks. 

Now if I can only restrain myself from propagating more...........

Plant Sale Scheduled for Saturday April 25th- 10AM to 3PM

Here is a list of plants ready for the sale.  There may be more plants as the week progresses. You can email me to place a plant on hold if you won't be able to make it to the sale. 

This is the ONLY plant sale I will have this year.  I am cleaning up and downsizing my plant propagation activities for now.   Because of  the treatment plans for my Myeloma this summer, I will not be able to keep up with watering and care of all the plants I usually do.   

There will likely be some plants that are still dormant and not ready now but may be available next month. I will not have another open garden sale then, but will post availability on this blog and send out an email for those interested. 

Pictures on this link. 

4	Aconitum sp. - Tall late summer blooming blue Monkshood 1gal.-$5.
2	Aconitum episcopale- Climbing Monkshood  qt. $4.
1	Actinidia kolomikta- Male Kiwi vine with pink variegated leaves- $6.
1	Adiantum pedatum Maidenhair fern 3" - $2.
2	Anemone japonica 'Alice' pink 2 gal.$ 2-3.
8	Anemone nemorosa 'Stammerberg' 4"-$2
3	Anomotheca laxa 'Joan Evans' 3 in. $2.
3	Aquilegia Blue columbine 2gal-$4; 1gal-$2
10	Astrantia major white or pink, 3 gal. $4; 1gal.-$2-3.
3	Athyrium niponicum -Japanese painted fern- 1gal-$5; qt-$3.
10	Beesia deltophylla- 4" - $4.
1	Campanula persicifolia Blue Bellflower- 6" $3.
7	Carex siderosticha 'variegata' - Broad leaf Sedge- 1gal.-$3.; 4"-$2.
6	Cardiocrinum giganteum- giant Himalyanum Lily offsets 4"pot- $4., 6"pot $9.
2	Dactylorhiza maculata - Spotted terrestrial orchid- 4"-$5.
4	Dicentra formosa Pacific Bleeding Heart 1 gal. $ 4.
11	Diphylleia cymosa - Umbrella leaf- 6"-$6.; 3"-$2
2	Disporopsis pernyi - Evergreen Solomon's Seal - 4" - $5
3	Disporum flavum - Yellow Fairy Bells- 1gal. -$3.; qt- $2
1	Euphorbia characias - 1 gal. $2.
1	Fatsia japonica 1 gal. $3.
1	Francoa sonchifolia -Maiden's wreath 4 in. $ 3.
10	Fritillaria meleagris- Guinea Hen flower- 4" $3-4.
3	Fuchsia molinae- Hardy fuchsia Maiden's Blush - 1gal- $3.; qt-$2.
5	Geranium: various Hardy geraniums - $1 - $4.
11	Hosta 'Wide Brim' 6"- $4. ; qt - $3.
6	Hosta 'Gold Standard' 1gal. - $4; qt- $3.
1	Hydrangea macrophylla - Pale Blue mophead- $7
1	Hydrangea serrata 'Diadem' - Mountain Hydrangea- $10
2	Iris ensata - Japanese Iris white with blue - $2 gal $9; 1 gal -$ $4.
3	Iris siberica 'Coronation Anthem' $2 - $6.
1	Iris siberica 'Nana Alba' 6" pot - $5.
3	Iris tectorum, blue Japanese Roof Iris- 1gal.-$4. ; 2gal.-$6
2	Iris versicolor 'Gerald Darby' 2 gal. very large clumps  $3.
7	Ligularia dentata 'Britt-Marie Crawford 1 gal. $5.
4	Lilium- Asiatic Lily 'Forever Susan' 1gal. $5.; qt-$3.
1	Lilium- orange Asiatic Lily- 2gal- $4
6	Ophiopogon japonicus 'Nanus' Dwarf Mondo Grass- 6"- $4; 4"- $3.
1	Ophiopogon planiscapus 'Nigrescens' Black Mondo Grass 6" -$5.
7	Persicaria amplexicaulis 'Firetail' -Red Mountain Fleeceflower- 1gal- $4; 6"-$3.
2	Phlomis russeliana - Jerusalem Sage- 1gal. $3.
2	Phlox 'David' tall fragrant white garden phlox -2 gal.  huge clumps  $3.
1	Polystichum achrostichoides- Christmas fern $3.
3	Polystichum munitum Western Sword fern $1- $5.
5	Primula japonica 'Potsford White' Candlabra Primrose - qt. $3.
9	Primula japonica Crimson red Candlabra Primrose - 6' -$4.; 4"- $3.
10	Primula x juliae 'Dorothy' small Primrose with pale yellow flowers. 3"- $2.
1	Rodgersia sp. 2+ gal. $ 9.; 3"- $3 -  still dormant
4	Salvia forskaohlei -Indigo woodland sage- 1gal-$3; 3"- $2.
1	Saxifraga x geum - 2 gal. $4
2	Sedum 'Arthur Branch' $2.
1	Styrax japonica - Japanese snowbell tree. 1 g. $2.
6	Tovara virginiana - Persicaria Lance Corporal - 1gal $5.; 4" $2.
9	Tropaeoleum tuberosum -Mashua- Perennial climbing nasturtium- 1gal.- $4; 4"- $3.
5	Uncinia unciniata- Red Hook Sedge- 3"- $1.
	TREES and SHRUBS:
	Vine Maples, Styrax, Lawson's Cedars ( Port Orford Cedar) ,  -
	Calocedrus decurrens-Pencil Cedar,   Thujopsis dolabrata- Hiba Cedar
	Native Dogwood, etc.
	Plus many more one of a kind plants, shrubs
	and trees.

MULTIPLE MYELOMA RESEARCH IS SORELY NEEDED

click for  My 2015 fundraising page and story.

Last year, on June 28th, 2015,my team ReMission MM Possible participated in a 5k / 1 mile run/ walk at Magnuson Park in Seattle to fund Myeloma research at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center.  I would like to invite you all to join my team or donate to help find a cure  ( there is no known cure) for Multiple Myeloma. 

To join my team or donate for 2016 go to https://www.firstgiving.com/team/317339

I was diagnosed this past February 2015 after several years of vague troublesome symptoms always attributed to something else. My treatments of chemo so far are about half way over, If all goes well in June I will have stem cells harvested and then in July receive a stem cell transplant.

 This disease is one of the fastest-growing cancers in the world. Despite its high numbers and devastating effects, the public -- both patients and physicians-- (and Physicians--can you believe that?)  --remains largely unaware of myeloma. As a result, patients can go mis- or undiagnosed for years. 

My other goal is to raise awareness of the possible symptoms so others can get a diagnosis and be treated in a more timely manner before damage is done to other areas of the body. I will be happy to share with you what all I have learned about this disease. 

It would be fun to run and / or walk with you on my team, or even have you come cheer us all on. Please go to the MoveMMore site to register and/ or donate.
 My team is "ReMission MMPossible"  and the registration will want the Team Captain; Judy Bracik and  the password for my team is "swedish"

5K / 1 mile RUN / WALK BENEFITS MULTIPLE MYELOMA

I plan to participate in the Run / Walk benefiting research at Fred Hutchinson SCCA.  I still need to come up with a team name so anyone who wants to participate can join our team.

MARCH IS MULTIPLE MYELOMA AWARENESS MONTH

Multiple myeloma is a little-known, devastating cancer of the bone marrow for which there is no known cure. Multiple myeloma affects approximately 75,000 to 100,000 people in the United States, and with more than 15,000 new cases diagnosed each year, is one of the fastest-growing cancers in the Western world. Despite its high numbers and devastating effects, the public — both patients and physicians — remains largely unaware of myeloma. As a result, patients can go mis- or undiagnosed for years.

MULTIPLE MYELOMA is a blood disorder caused by the proliferation of abnormal plasma cells in the bone marrow.  It develops when a plasma cell genetically mutates then takes over and crowds out the normal healthy plasma cells. This results in anemias, compromised immune function and bone loss. The symptoms are often ambiguous and easily attributed to commonplace disorders. 
Fatigue, frequent infections, and various aches and pains or even no symptoms at all may be the only signs in the early stages. However as the disease progresses there will be high levels of proteins and calcium ( from the bone loss) present in the blood which can then lead to confusion, kidney damage, fractures, severe pain, and nerve damage. 
There is is a simple blood test, SPEP (serum protein electrophoresis) which can lead to an early diagnosis if you have a doctor who is familiar with this disease.