Hope

Today was a full day at Dana Farber for the Multiple Myeloma Patient Symposium. We were there from 8am - 3:30pm. It was a lot of sitting! About 300 people attended and we were divided into 2 groups with the speakers spending a portion of the day with each group. And what wonderful speakers - doctors and nurses - we had! I am so fortunate to live in an area with so many hospitals and researchers focused on multiple myeloma. Represented today were Dana Farber, of course, Beth Israel Deaconness Hospital, and Mass General, sharing their research as well as that of their partners and colleagues in the US, France, Italy, and Spain.

I'm somewhat overwhelmed with the considerable research presented today. Much of it was quite technical, but it was mostly presented in terms that we patients and families could understand. Are all diseases studied in such depth? I wonder. It seems to me that I haven't been exposed to as much research in type 1 diabetes. Is it that I am just so accustomed to having diabetes that I no longer seek information on new developments? It could be. Though I receive regular updates from the American Diabetes Association, I haven't done much further investigation since I looked into moving to my insulin pump 3 years ago. Still, it seems that much progress has been made in MM in the 9 months that I've had this disease.

In addition to learning about the current research in MM, I walked away from today's symposium with 2 things: awareness and hope.

Awareness of the steps I need to take to support my good health: eating an anti-inflammatory diet, drinking at least 2 quarts of fluid daily, exploring complementary medicine, and exercising each and every day. (don't ask me about my daily walking - it's gone by the way side - but will restart tomorrow!).

And hope. Truly tremendous hope.  The developments in treatment and the progress in research give me hope that in the future I will receive more effective medication, experience fewer side effects, and ultimately live a life where multiple myeloma abides as quietly in my life as does diabetes.