Chicago-area mother, daughter discover matching cancer diagnoses after routine aches

Chicago-area mother, daughter discover matching cancer diagnoses after routine aches

A Chicago-area mother and her daughter brushed off everyday aches until those aches pointed to something far more serious.

CHICAGO - A Chicago-area woman brushed off everyday aches until those aches pointed to something far more serious. Her mother in Michigan went through the same thing the year before, which made the diagnosis even harder for both of them to process.

What we know:

"I was just feeling really sore, kind of general soreness like you would feel after you work out too hard," said Carley.

Soreness like that usually fades. This soreness did not. It pushed Carley to a Northbrook emergency room for what she thought would be simple bloodwork.

"They said, nope, we are admitting you to the hospital," she said. "And after one day and a lot of tests, they said I had multiple myeloma."

The diagnosis stunned her. Carley was 42. She was raising two young children. She lived an active life. She did not expect anything serious.

Her mother, Carol, lives in West Bloomfield, Michigan. She had been told she had the same cancer a year earlier.

"I could have gone for years without knowing if I had not fractured my ribs," Carol said. "After the X-ray they said it was indicative of multiple myeloma."

Multiple myeloma is a blood cancer. It begins in the bone marrow where the body makes blood cells. About 35,000 people in the United States are diagnosed each year. It is not common. It does not usually run in families. Most people are older when they learn they have it.

"I call it a disease in the Medicare population. The median age of diagnosis is around 65," said Dr. Robert Rifkin, who treats myeloma patients across the country.

Dr. Rifkin said the cancer affects plasma cells. These are immune cells that help the body fight germs. When plasma cells become cancerous, they crowd out healthy cells. This can weaken bones. It can drain energy. It can cause kidney problems.

There is no known cause. There is no cure. People can still live many years with the disease because treatment can keep it under control for long periods of time.

"I have been through multiple treatments and this last one is the one that seems to be doing the trick to put me in remission," Carol said.

Treatment depends on the patient. It often includes targeted therapy, immunotherapy, or chemotherapy. Carley also had a stem cell transplant to help her body rebuild healthy bone marrow.

Relapse is always a possibility.

"It is always in the forefront of my mind. It never goes away knowing that I have this," Carol said.

Carley manages it differently. "I do not even think about it except on treatment days once a month when I have to go in or refill medications," she said.

Their strength comes from each other and from the fact that treatment has changed fast in the past twenty years.

"When I started my fellowship, the median survival was one and a half years and now I have many patients over 20 years," Dr. Rifkin said.

One newer option is giving patients even more hope. The Food and Drug Administration recently reapproved a medicine called Blenrep. It is used for people whose myeloma has come back or stopped responding to other treatments. Blenrep attaches to a protein on most myeloma cells called BCMA. That protein works like a bright target that helps the medicine find and kill cancer cells. Patients who take Blenrep need regular eye exams to check for possible side effects.

Blenrep is one of several treatments helping doctors slow the disease, extend life, and give families options that did not exist a few years ago.

What's next:

Dr. Rifkin said many people do not realize how much can be found through simple bloodwork. Aches that stick around, constant tiredness, or bone pain that does not make sense should be checked. If something in your body feels off for more than a few weeks, talk to a doctor.

More information is available from the Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation at themmrf.org and the International Myeloma Foundation at myeloma.org.