Treatment update May 16th

 So today was the final day of my 'screening' to take part in a clinical trial of a myeloma drug at Addenbrokes hospital in Cambridge.

Over the last couple of weeks they have conducted all the screening they need. This is partly I think to check that you don't have any health problems that would put you at risk (apart from an incurable but treatable blood cancer of course 🙂). The other purpose is to get a benchmark against which to measure progress or regression during the trial period. 

Yesterday I had to complete a long screen-based questionnaire about the effect that my cancer is having on me. For 95% of the questions the answer was "absolutely none", which is good. The 5% were very mild effects. I don't quite feel like a fraud, but it is certainly the least impacting cancer I could think of, compared to any that friends or acquaintances have had. But this will eventually change, I know. The question is how long that 'eventually' is. 

The final process of the day was a computerised 'coin toss' to decide whether I got the experimental drug Elranatamab, or the 'standard of care' treatment with Lenalidomide as the long term maintenance drug.

My coin landed heads which meant I will be going in ASAP to start on the Elranatamab. And it looks like ASAP means the day after tomorrow! I'm pleased to have got this arm of the trial, because if I'd got the 'control' arm of Lenalidomide maintenance, then I would have had to retire from the trial and request a second sten cell transplant, as I've been advised this would benefit me. But it would also have come with good old Melphalan chemo and the loss of my hair again (plus much else)

Angie has said that Elranatamab sound like a sultan, pasha or maharajah, so I am including a random pic of him above and expect to join his court in a couple of days. Here goes!