Myeloma
Overview
What is myeloma
Myeloma is a type of blood cancer originating in plasma cells and is considered to be a less common type of cancer. Multiple myeloma is one of the most common forms of myeloma. Treatment will vary for myeloma depending on the number of sites the cancer is present and the types of symptoms being presented.
Multiple myeloma is plasma cells in your bone marrow that develop into malignant cancer cells. When the cancer is found in different areas of the bone marrow, this is known as multiple myeloma.
How common is myeloma
There are estimated to be 30,280 new myeloma cancer cases in the United States in 2017. 1
Questions regarding your myeloma therapy
You can reach the Accredo oncology care team, anytime, day or night, seven days a week.
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1. https://seer.cancer.gov/statfacts/html/livibd.html as of 7/20/17
Symptoms
What are the symptoms of myeloma
Patients may have myeloma and may not be presenting any symptoms. For those patients who are experiencing myeloma, the below is a list of symptoms the patient may experience:
- Anemia
- Hypercalcemia (high calcium count in blood)
- Kidney impacts
- Rise in infections
- Bone pain, swelling, or fracture
How is it diagnosed
Myeloma is diagnosed after various tests are conducted. Bone marrow biopsies and blood work help determine what kind of myeloma cancer is present and how it can be treated. Other tools that may help in diagnosing myeloma are:
- Urine tests
- Blood tests
- X-rays
- CT Scan
Medications
Myeloma
Accredo, a specialty pharmacy for myeloma, dispenses specialty and non-specialty myeloma medications including (but not limited to):
Disease Treatments
Drug | Generic/Biosimilar | Manufacturer |
---|---|---|
Darzalex® (daratumumab) | Janssen | |
Darzalex Faspro™ (daratumumab and hyaluronidase-fihj) | Janssen | |
Empliciti (elotuzumab) | Bristol Myers Squibb | |
Farydak® (panobinostat) | Novartis | |
Ninlaro® (ixazomib) | Takeda | |
Pomalyst® (pomalidomide) | Celgene | |
Revlimid ® (lenalidomide) | Celgene | |
Thalomid® (thalidomide) | Celgene | |
Velcade® (bortezomib) | Takeda |
Supportive Treatments
Depending on your diagnosis and needs, we carry additional supportive care medications (this is not a complete listing of all available drugs or manufacturers).
Drug | Generic/Biosimilar | Manufacturer |
---|---|---|
Mozobil® (plerixafor) | Sanofi | |
Neulasta® (pegfilgrastim) | Amgen | |
Neupogen® (filgrastim) | Amgen | |
Procrit® (epoetin alfa) | Janssen | |
Zarxio (filgrastim-sndz) | Sandoz | |
Zometa® zoledronic acid | Novartis |
Accredo also dispenses traditional chemotherapy medications as well as supportive care medications ordered by your prescriber that are not listed above.
Financing Your Care
Financial assistance coordination may be available to help with your medication costs, including manufacturer and community programs. Accredo representatives are available to help find a program that may work for you.
Financial Guidance
Life-saving specialty medication can be expensive. Learn how the Accredo teams help individuals find ways to afford the medication they need to survive in this video.
Find Support
There are many organizations that support research and advocacy for leukemia. See below for a few of those organizations.
Myeloma Organizations
Cancer Support Organizations
There are many organizations that support research and advocacy for cancer. See below for a few of those organizations.
- American Cancer Society
- American Society of Clinical Oncology
- Association of Cancer Online Resources
- Cancer Support Community
- Livestrong Foundation
- OncoLink
- National Foundation for Cancer Research
- Prevent Cancer Foundation
- Conquer Cancer Foundation
- Inspire.com
- CancerCare
- Cancer GRACE
- National Coalition for Cancer Survivorship
- National Comprehensive Cancer Network
- Patient Advocate Foundation
Government Organizations
Meet the Team
Accredo’s oncology care team is dedicated to serving you and we understand the complexity of your condition. Our specialty-trained clinicians are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, to answer any questions.
Why We Do It
Accredo supports patients with chronic and complex conditions and helps them live their best life. Watch our video to learn why we do what we do for our patients.