Not Good News Today
I've participated in a study of a new drug called pomalidomide (originally called CC-4047) for 47 cycles now, each 28 days long. It's been a wonderful ride so far, with the cancer held stable for more than 3 1/2 years. Eventually every treatment fails, however, and when that happens I will see the cancer markers starting to increase.

They increased today. The blood test results at Mayo Clinic showed a 28% rise in immunoglobulin G (IgG), from 1020 to 1310 mg/dL, which is the largest jump in IgG since I started in the study. The monoclonal (naughty) component of immunoglobulin G is called M-Spike, and it increased too, though more modestly, from 1.0 to 1.1 g/dL. The results do go up and down, of course, for perfectly natural reasons, and they most likely will go down again next month. Or, they could continue on upward. Meanwhile, I'll be on pins and needles.

What if they do keep going up? There are several other treatments that my myeloma hasn't yet had a chance to outgrow, and some of them will undoubtedly help.

Better news: Calcium, kidney function, hemoglobin, and white counts are all within normal limits. I think that means that the myeloma most likely isn't hurting me yet.

Some Current Test Results:

Test    Jul 28    Aug 25    Sep 22    Oct 19     Remarks
M-spike g/dL 1.0 1.1 1.0 1.1 \ Tumor marker up
IgG mg/dL 1030 1150 1020 1310 / Tumor marker up
Lambda mg/dL 2.21 2.25 2.49 2.75 L Free light chains
Calcium mg/dL 9.8 10.5 10.0 10.0 OK
Creatinine mg/dL 1.3 1.1 0.9 1.1 Kidney, OK
HGB g/dL 15.1 14.7 14.9 14.6 Hemoglobin, OK
RBC M/uL 4.17 4.08 4.09 4.07 Red cells, low
WBC K/uL 5.1 3.8 6.2 4.8 White cells, normal
ANC K/uL 1.90 1.40 2.60 2.30 Neutrophils, normal

Related Links:

My Myeloma     A discussion of my myeloma, not very technical.
My Treatment History Not technical.
My Test Charts Graphic displays of several key test results over time.
My Test Result Table Somewhat technical. Best with a wide browser window.
My Supplement Regimen With links to where I buy them.