For me, 2022 has been a fun year. Things started to feel a little back to normal. I traveled with my husband for vacations and to visit family. I also traveled for myeloma conferences. I was so excited to be back in-person at the International Myeloma Foundation (IMF) Support Group Leaders Summit in September. And now, I am so excited to be attending, in-person, the 64th American Society of Hematology (ASH) Annual Meeting and Exposition.
Once again, my focus will be on new therapies for the relapsed/refractory myeloma patients. When I was first diagnosed in October of 2011, there was no cure, and I was told I would always be on treatment to keep the myeloma in check. Now, eleven years later, I am in remission, but still on treatment to stay in remission. I know that my myeloma might start to rear its ugly head again. So, I want to be informed about my options when that time comes. There are also discussions focused on how long we need to be on maintenance treatment. Minimal Residual Disease (MRD) testing is talked about as possibly defining an endpoint for treatment. I am interested in hearing what the experts are saying. And I will bring all of this information back to my support group members in Idaho.
I am very grateful to the IMF and the pharmaceutical sponsors that allow us to attend ASH each year. So here’s to long days, lots of learning, and comfortable shoes. I will miss my slippers.