Determined to Live Large with Cancer
- Gareth Alexander was 42 years old when he first started experiencing chest pain. It went on for 18 months before he was diagnosed with multiple myeloma, a type of blood cancer.
- Determined to live each day to the fullest, the father-of-two is grateful for his medical team and praises his doctors and nurses for their high standard of care through this process. Additionally, he is urging anyone with lingering pain to get immediate help.
- Multiple myeloma is an incurable cancer, which means a person will always have this cancer. However, with treatment, it can go into remission and remain undetected for years.
“It was very similar to a chest pain I’d had about ten years ago which was muscular and would flare up when I was lifting something really heavy,” the Belfast, Ireland native, now 46, told BelfastLive. “Within 3-6 months it was back to normal and I was able to play a bit of golf and cricket and hadn’t any problems with my chest again.
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Finally a thoracic consultant ordered a CT scan.
“I got it within a week and it showed a tumour on my chest,” he shared of the terrifying realization. “At that stage they were looking at potential chest surgeries and trying to remove tumours and bits and bobs.”
A Multiple Myeloma Diagnosis
After a biopsy, the results came back as myeloma, also known as multiple myeloma in the United States. “I had never heard of it and didn’t know what they were talking about,” he admitted, quickly learning that sadly, it was incurable.
“It’s not a great prognosis but [the consultant] did give you hope… She was able to give me examples of patients of hers who were able to carry on with their normal life and go back to doing sporty things and all the rest.”
After starting radiation to shrink the tumor, Gareth sought comfort in finding other people going through the same as he was.
“I went to a myeloma event a while ago and other patients had more or less the exact same symptoms as I had,” he explained.
Then he finished his six chemotherapy cycles in December 2019. At the very least, the treatment thankfully “completely removed the pain of the chest.”
How Do You Treat the Symptoms of Multiple Myeloma When a Patient Is Undergoing Therapy?
Because of COVID, Gareth’s stem cell transplant, which is also a standard form of treatment in multiple myeloma, was delayed for a few months.
“It’s a four week stay in hospital … It kind of leaves you completely weak and with the immune system of a newborn baby,” he shared. “You have to build yourself up from nothing again really.”
Gareth focused on light activity like walking to help nurse his body back to health. Eventually, he was able to bike, and says he became “reasonably fit” again in 2020.
“The initial diagnosis is seven years maybe type thing but then you do hear more stories about people who have had it for 20 years and are still fine,” Gareth expressed positively.
Overall, Gareth is grateful for his care team and praises his doctors and nurses for their high standard of care through this process. Additionally, he is urging anyone with lingering pain to get immediate help.
Understanding Multiple Myeloma
Multiple myeloma is a rare type of blood cancer. When a person has this cancer, white blood cells called plasma cells (the cells that make antibodies to fight infections) in your bone marrow grow out of proportion to healthy cells.
Those abnormal cells leave less room for the healthy blood cells your body needs to fight infections. They can also spread to other parts of your body and cause problems with organs, like the kidneys.
How Does Maintenance Therapy for Multiple Myeloma Work?
Myeloma is an incurable cancer, which means a person will always have this cancer. However, with treatment, it can go into remission and remain undetected for years. But sometimes, the cancer can return or relapse after treatment. If this happens, your doctor can put you on one of the treatments you have already tried again, try a new treatment or recommend that you enroll in a clinical trial.
SurvivorNet medical experts say that oftentimes, people are diagnosed with this cancer after going to their doctor seeking an answer for persistent tiredness or other unusual symptoms.
Contributing by SurvivorNet staff.
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