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Multiple Myeloma (cont.)

Follow-up care for multiple myeloma

Follow-up care after treatment for multiple myeloma is important. Your doctor will monitor your health and check for recurrence or changes in the cancer. Checkups help ensure that any changes in your health are noted and treated as needed. Checkups may include a physical exam, lab tests, bone marrow aspiration, and x-rays. Between scheduled visits, you should contact the doctor right away if you have any health problems.

To help answer questions about follow-up care and other concerns, the NCI has a booklet for people who have completed their treatment. Facing Forward Series: Life After Cancer Treatment provides tips for making the best use of medical visits. It describes how to talk with the doctor about creating a plan of action for recovery and future health.

Sources of support for cancer patients

Living with a serious disease such as multiple myeloma is not easy. You may worry about caring for your family, keeping your job, or continuing daily activities. Concerns about treatments and managing side effects, hospital stays, and medical bills are also common. Doctors, nurses, and other members of the health care team can answer questions about treatment, work, or other activities. Meeting with a social worker, counselor, or member of the clergy can be helpful if you want to talk about your feelings or concerns. Often, a social worker can suggest resources for financial aid, transportation, home care, or emotional support.

Support groups also can help. In these groups, patients or their family members meet with other patients or their families to share what they have learned about coping with the disease and the effects of treatment. Groups may offer support in person, over the telephone, or on the Internet. You may want to talk with a member of your health care team about finding a support group.

Cancer Information Specialists at 1-800-4-CANCER and at LiveHelp (http://www.cancer.gov) can help you locate programs, services, and publications. Also, you may want to see the NCI fact sheets called "Cancer Support Groups: Questions and Answers" and "National Organizations That Offer Services to People With Cancer and Their Families."

The promise of cancer research

Doctors all over the country are conducting clinical trials (research studies in which people volunteer to take part). Many are studying new ways to treat multiple myeloma.

Clinical trials are designed to answer important questions and to find out whether the new treatments are safe and effective. Research already has led to advances, such as stem cell transplantation, and researchers continue to look for better ways to treat multiple myeloma.

Researchers are testing anticancer drugs (such as thalidomide and bortezomib) and drug combinations. They are also testing ways to improve stem cell transplantation for people with multiple myeloma.

People who join clinical trials may be among the first to benefit if a new approach is effective. And even if participants do not benefit directly, they still make an important contribution to medicine by helping doctors learn more about the disease and how to control it. Although clinical trials may pose some risks, researchers do all they can to protect their patients.

If you are interested in being part of a clinical trial, you should talk with your doctor. You may want to read the NCI booklet Taking Part in Clinical Trials: What Cancer Patients Need To Know. The NCI also offers an easy-to-read brochure called If You Have Cancer...What You Should Know About Clinical Trials. These NCI publications describe how clinical trials are carried out and explain their possible benefits and risks.

NCI's Web site includes a section on clinical trials at http://www.cancer.gov/clinical_trials. It has general information about clinical trials as well as detailed information about specific ongoing studies of multiple myeloma. Information Specialists at 1-800-4-CANCER or at LiveHelp at http://www.cancer.gov can answer questions and provide information about clinical trials.



Next: What other resources are available to multiple myeloma patients? »

Multiple Myeloma - Symptoms At Onset Of Disease

The MedicineNet physician editors ask:

The symptoms of multiple myeloma can vary greatly from patient to patient. What were your symptoms at the onset of your disease?

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