Great news!

Thanks to so many of you for your prayers and encouragement. God is good all the time!

Today is a great day! For the second visit in a row the oncologist was very positive about Deb. Our reaction Wednesday to the blood work remaining the same reminds me of the end of my first year of Greek. Our teacher said, “Boys, you can read a little bit of Greek now, but you only know enough to be dangerous and cause trouble. You know the basic rules but have no concept of all the exceptions to the rules.” (Even after four years of classroom instruction in Greek, I realize I still only know enough to cause trouble and confusion!) Well, we only know enough about Myeloma to make wrong assumptions and jump to erroneous conclusions, like we did on Wednesday, so I removed that "blue, blue" update based on our poor assumptions due to Deb calling a nurse to get a marker number a day before we met with the oncologist.

Today the oncologist explained that they very seldom get a myeloma patient’s M protein down to a 0.0. A 0.1 is great, and the longer it stays at 0.1 without increasing the better. She has been at 0.1 since the end of August. He said that if she had only had a 75% drop, they would have called that a remission, but she has had and maintained a 97% drop! (She had a 91% drop in August, if you remember, in the specific marker, IGA). This is a great remission, even if it is not a “complete remission.” A “complete remission” (0.0 and no measurable cancer activity or presence) seldom happens, although our friend here, Eddie Nelson, as I understand it, did achieve a complete remission even before his stem cell transplant, however his MM was in only one vertebra and was caught very early.

The Dr. said that Debbie’s response to the treatment for Myeloma is about as good as it gets! A stem cell transplant might give a little better treatment response, but even that is only effective 70% of the time, and they are very happy if the M protein stays at 0.1 even after a transplant. He said that 0.1 does NOT necessarily mean that the cancer is still nibbling away on her bones, although it could be doing a little bit of it. We just don’t know and cannot measure it except over time (many months) with periodic x-rays. I had forgotten that he told us in August that the M protein is not a real accurate measure of cancer activity. So that also makes us feel much better about coasting along with a 0.1 reading. He is very pleased with her progress, and even at the last visit he encouraged her to keep doing what she is doing. Praise the Lord! So if down the road, she does get into a complete remission, we will praise God for his further divine intervention.

He reemphasized that in treating myeloma he is concerned with three things: blood, bones, and M protein. He reiterated that the M protein is under control. The blood is back to normal and under control. Therefore, the bones should be under control and that explains no new compression fractures and they appear to be under control too. Occasionally, x-rays and MRI's can cross them up in their reading of them. Something shows up and they just assume it is myeloma when it could have been a number of other things. Here I go assuming again, but it would appear then, that the films that had him and the neurosurgeon so concerned back in November may not have been new myeloma. We are praying that it was new bone growth. Whatever it was should be clearer in X-rays and an MRI to be done next week. The comparison between films will be interesting to see.

So we will quit stressing over insignificant numbers and enjoy each day that the Lord makes on our behalf. May God bless you in a special way this weekend so that you sense his presence and his love for you.

Duane
P.S. I plan to start writing spots on this blog about lessons we have learned thru this ordeal - lessons that have taken us from a very good marriage to a great marriage.

Duane