You have several types of blood cells:
Plasma cells are a special type of white blood cell. Plasma cells make antibodies. Antibodies are proteins that are part of your body's natural defenses against infections and cancer. Antibodies find and attack foreign cells.
Bone marrow is in the center of your bones. Most of the cells in your blood are made in your bone marrow. The different blood cells all develop from what's called a stem cell.
What is multiple myeloma?
Multiple myeloma is a cancer of plasma cells. One of your plasma cells multiplies out of control in your bone marrow and makes many copies of itself.
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Multiple myeloma often causes bone pain, fractures, and kidney failure
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The average age of people with multiple myeloma is about 65
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Doctors do blood and urine tests and a bone marrow biopsy (remove a sample of the bone marrow to look at under a microscope) to diagnose multiple myeloma
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Doctors usually treat the cancer with chemotherapy, corticosteroids, and sometimes a stem cell transplant
How does multiple myeloma cause problems?
The cancerous plasma cells:
Bone invasion makes your bones hurt and more likely to break.
When the abnormal cells take over your bone marrow, you don't make enough normal blood cells. Without enough red blood cells, you get anemia (low blood count). Without enough healthy white cells, you're at risk for infections. Without enough platelets, you may have excessive bleeding.
The extra antibody made by the cancerous plasma cells is abnormal and doesn't help protect you from infection. However, it can clog up your kidneys and give you kidney failure.
What causes multiple myeloma?
What are the symptoms of multiple myeloma?
How can doctors tell if I have multiple myeloma?
Doctors will do:
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Blood tests to measure different kinds of blood cells and antibodies
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Urine tests to measure antibodies and other proteins made by the myeloma
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X-rays of any bones that hurt
If these tests show you might have multiple myeloma, doctors will do:
How do doctors treat multiple myeloma?
Doctors will treat you to help slow the cancer’s growth and relieve your symptoms. They can’t cure multiple myeloma, but you may survive for a long time.
Doctors may give you:
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Chemotherapy and other drugs to stop the cancer from growing
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Medicines to strengthen your bones
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Sometimes radiation therapy to treat painful bones
Sometimes doctors do a stem cell transplant.
Doctors are doing fewer stem cell transplants because the newer drugs for multiple myeloma work fairly well.
