Diagnosed with SMM, SPB, or MGUS?
Learn how you can stall the development of full-blown Multiple Myeloma with evidence-based nutritional and supplementation therapies.
Click the orange button to the right to learn more.
- You are here:
- Home »
- Blog »
- Pre-Myeloma »
- Low-dose CT for Stable MGUS?
Low-dose CT for Stable MGUS?
Is a low-dose CT for stable MGUS an important diagnostic tool or too much radiation? You may have read the recent article about CT scans increasing the risk of cancer, which the patient’s question below mentions. At the same time, the questioner’s oncologist is requesting a full-body CT scan.
What’s a patient to do?
Good morning. I have found your website helpful over the past few years regarding MGUS. I have a general question, as I value your insight. I was diagnosed with MGUS in 2021 as IGM Lambda.
My IGM is currently 648, and a recent bone marrow biopsy showed 5% plasma cells with no abnormalities. My IGA and IGG are low, but all other labs look great. (Light chains normal) The full-body bone scan looked good.
My hematologist now wants me to have a full-body CT scan in July, but I am extremely hesitant to do so because of the amount of radiation exposure and my low risk of progression. I am 71 years old and have already undergone 5 CT scans of the brain, neck, and abdomen in the past 6 years (other diagnosis), which were normal, plus 2 DEXA scans for bone density, and I know that radiation exposure is cumulative.
I am holistically minded, eat a Whole Foods diet, walk 3 miles outside every day, and am healthy. If it were you, would you postpone the CT scan?
Here is my thinking…
- 5% plasma cells diagnosed in a recent BMB
- No genetic abnormalities
- MGUS, not SMM
- history of CT scans
- The patient lives a low-risk lifestyle
I am not anti-onc. in any way. I am a long-term MM survivor who thinks long-term. In my experience, oncologists think short-term.
I do think that the patient has the final say about what happens to his/her body. Taking a wait-and-see approach to this recommendation for a full-body CT scan is the way to go, in my opinion.
Email me at David.PeopleBeatingCancer@gmail.com with your thoughts.
Thanks,
David Emerson
- MM Survivor
- MM Cancer Coach
- Director PeopleBeatingCancer
Yearly Assessment of Bone Disease in Patients with Asymptomatic Multiple Myeloma Identifies Early Progression Events and Should Be the Standard Clinical Practice
“Smoldering multiple myeloma (SMM) represents an intermediate stage between monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance and symptomatic multiple myeloma (MM), with a significant risk of progression.
Bone disease is a key feature of MM, often marking the transition to symptomatic disease. Whole-body low-dose computed tomography (WBLDCT) is an easily accessible and highly sensitive imaging modality for detecting osteolytic lesions, providing an advantage over conventional skeletal surveys.
In our real-world cohort, we prospectively evaluated the role of WBLDCT in the early identification of bone progression in patients with SMM based on the recommendations by the International Myeloma Working Group.
A total of 113 patients were monitored with annual WBLDCT assessments;
- 36.3% progressed to symptomatic MM,
- With 9.7% progressing solely with bone lesions, highlighting the importance of early detection.
Therefore, integrating annual WBLDCT assessments into clinical practice for SMM patients is essential to facilitate treatment strategies and prevent disease-related complications. This is even more important in the upcoming era of early treatment initiation for patients with SMM at high risk for progression…”
CT for stable MGUS CT for stable MGUS CT for stable MGUS CT for stable MGUS