Bad day for dad
 

My dad was diagnosed with Amyloidosis about a week ago and they went for a pre-biopsy consultation today to try to determine which type. The doctor decided the biopsy was not necessary as he is certain it is in my dad's bone marrow. He was referred to a Hematologist that can see him "sooner than later" (doctor's words). I know little about this disease but it is suspected that my dad's mother possibly passed from the same thing. That puts me next in line.

Some mentioned treatments were chemo, and stem cell transplant.

He's certainly had better news. :(

He'll be 82 on August 10th. He's my own personal Superman. :seasix:

I'm hoping and praying for the best outcome.

from Wikipee:

He is suspected to have the AL type. A bone marrow sample needs to be taken to be sure.

He was told under no circumstances should he get the vaccine.

Sorry man, hope things go well for him.

Best of luck to him. You too. It's hard when parents get old.

:withstupid::angel:

Hoping for the best, but, well, you know. :angel:

Beautiful thoughts for your dad. He and I share the same birthday, and I'm confident he's a better electrician than I am.

:sadangel:

Damn, sorry to hear this. Let's hope medical intervention will work for him.

Is stem cell transplant the same thing as bone marrow transplant? Would you be able to donate to your dad? If not, and he's needing a donor, pm me details about how to get tested.

Bone marrow sample taking is tons of fun. I went through it three times during diagnosis and treatment for HCL in the late 80s. It still beats the alternative. Good luck to him

Good lick to him :yesnod:

Good luck to him. !

And good luck as well. :yesnod:

Will keep him in our prayers. May God bless him:angel:

Keeping your dad in my thoughts and prayers

The best of, hoping treatments work.

Hoping for the best.

This disease does not have a very good prognosis. We are going to try to get him in a clinical study. The upside is that it is not placebo vs drug. It is historical treatment vs historical treatment plus an added drug.

Thoughts and prayers.

Hoping for the best :angel:

This ^^^^^ :sadangel:

Dad just met with a cardiac/amyloidosis doctor and he is sending him straight over to the hospital. There's a lot going on. They said to plan on being there at least a week. On the upside, Methodist hospital is one of the best amyloidosis hospitals. Certainly the best in Houston. The Dr. seems to be genuinely interested, which is unusual among the 7 or so doctors he has already been to. He also seems to be not revealing all he suspects. That is extremely worrisome.

This video explains a lot for the curious...

Hopefully they get it under control, sounds like dr on top of things.

:sadangel:

:iagree::sadangel:

Still hoping for a positive outcome :yesnod:

Best of luck you your Dad. :yesnod:

:sadangel:

That will depend on the nurse.

Best wishes for the OPs Dad. :angel:

:sadangel: Prayers for the best outcome Jeff.:cert:

Dude I feel for you. I lost my superhero a few years ago at 82. I still miss that man today. In this time just be there for him, let him know you love him everyday and look back at all the good times you've enjoyed (and even the bad time as my father always taught me something when times were bad) together.
You both are in my thoughts.

Flashback: I had a thread where I was saying they wanted to remove the pacemaker and leads from my dad. This newest doctor said that essentially it is doing nothing. My dad is in afib with the pacemaker. It is not doing anything to prevent it. That is why they want to take it out. The leads are allowing leakage and the thought is that they can remove the lead, clip the other valve, and he should be markedly improved. No sense having a pacemaker that is doing NOTHING.

:iagree:

My dad had a bone marrow biopsy taken today. As was stated by 99 pewtercoupe earlier, it was extremely painful for him. Because of stupid hospital rules, we set up video communication last night so at least I get to virtually visit.

This is rough for both my parents. Your prayers and well wishes are appreciated and needed.

Yep they suck unfortunately, all part of figuring put what's wrong and get him better though.

The doctor said he is pretty sure it is the AL version, which is not good, but if it has been caught early enough, the outcome is better.

Consider it done.

🙏🙏🙏hope for the best Jeff:cert:

The official diagnosis will be Monday as far as I know. I expect the worst and hope for the best. That's all that can be done. Worry and sorrow will not change the outcome. We will get the diagnosis, the treatment options and let Dad decide, He has every right to be selfish in his choice.

My dad begins his chemo the week after next. Taking Velcade once a week for 15 weeks. This is going to be a tough time for him. :(

Sorry to hear man, praying for a positive outcome for him.

Agreed...

The official diagnosis is Multiple Myeloma.

Multiple myeloma is a cancer that forms in a type of white blood cell called a plasma cell. Healthy plasma cells help you fight infections by making antibodies that recognize and attack germs.

In multiple myeloma, cancerous plasma cells accumulate in the bone marrow and crowd out healthy blood cells. Rather than produce helpful antibodies, the cancer cells produce abnormal proteins that can cause complications.

Treatment for multiple myeloma isn't always necessary right away. If the multiple myeloma is slow growing and isn't causing signs and symptoms, your doctor may recommend close monitoring instead of immediate treatment. For people with multiple myeloma who require treatment, a number of options are available to help control the disease.
It's not clear what causes myeloma.

Doctors know that myeloma begins with one abnormal plasma cell in your bone marrow — the soft, blood-producing tissue that fills in the center of most of your bones. The abnormal cell multiplies rapidly.

Because cancer cells don't mature and then die as normal cells do, they accumulate, eventually overwhelming the production of healthy cells. In the bone marrow, myeloma cells crowd out healthy blood cells, leading to fatigue and an inability to fight infections.

The myeloma cells continue trying to produce antibodies, as healthy plasma cells do, but the myeloma cells produce abnormal antibodies that the body can't use. Instead, the abnormal antibodies (monoclonal proteins, or M proteins) build up in the body and cause problems such as damage to the kidneys. Cancer cells can also cause damage to the bones that increases the risk of broken bones.

They are telling us that they believe they caught this in its phase that is most treatable. Hopefully that is true.

Prayers for the best outcome Jeff. Keep your spirits up, and help out the best you can.:cert:

I had cancer, not blood, that they caught early enough as well. Outcome was good. Wishing your dad the same. Medicine has become pretty good these days:seasix: The hardest part for me was mental, so make sure he has the best support system available. Even just to talk/sit. It's scary shit and dudes like to act tough.

Hope its true too!

As always, pulling for you guys.

This...:iagree:

Oh man, that sucks. But that's great news about the timing.

Stay strong for your Dad....he needs that in this battle.

Jeff! Praying for ya🙏🏻 And more for PoPs🙏🏻 Thanks for update. Can they do marrow transplant ?

Greatly appreciated.

At 82, that is a last resort/last option. It was discussed but the oncologist seems to be certain this will respond and thinks a transplant would be complicated by his age. It is apparently not a lot of fun to say the least. Not that chemo is, but unless they are minimizing this for some reason, it seems we'll see improvement in 10 weeks. At 6 weeks they will know if the course of action is effective, at 10 weeks he should feel noticeably better, and at 15 weeks receive the last treatment. I'm concerned because I couldn't find anything that addressed that short a term for treatment. Most had 1 year schedules with a 6 month evaluation. I'm hoping they are not sugar-coating it all.

I am humbled by the "Thanks" given in my OP. It means a lot to me and it will mean a lot to my dad when I share your well wishes. He sometimes forgets, as I do, that there is genuine "good" left in this world.

Thank you all !

In the waiting room. First chemo for dad coming up in 20 minutes.😷

Stay strong for him, he needs you. Good luck.

I'm glad you're there to take care of him, Jeff. Stay strong, and stay dry.

I hope things go well for him. :seasix:

Positive thoughts for yer pops

Positive thoughts for yer dad

Praying things go well!

He's home. So far he feels like he did when he went in. Not sure when the nausea should be expected, but none yet.

Thank you for the well wishes.

Great news! :hurray:

I went to a few treatments with my Dad, just make sure he keeps eating so he can maintain his strength. My prayers will be with you and your Dad during this time.

Always nice to hear good news! :hurray:

1 down, 14 to go. :seasix:

hope the rest are as this one..

Prayers for you and your Dad both for the weeks ahead.
Prayers for life and a gentle recovery.

Amazingly, my dad had his third chemo treatment with zero side effects. Two more and they will run a battery of tests and see if anything needs tweaked and if any progress is being made. Then Round two for 5 more weeks.

:seasix::cert:

Praying for you here in Florida.

We'll keep him in our thoughts and prayers. Been through a few chemo treatments with others and they can be brutal.

Long time friend of mine has been battling pancreatic cancer for over a year and he's barely hanging in.
Scott

Sounds like he is doing well, great news! :yesnod:

Hopefully this knocks the shit down and for good, glad he's taking the treatments so well.

I really hope your dad is doing well. It sounds like he needs a break, some time that he can feel healthy and appreciate being with those that love him like yourself.:angel: