Recently Diagnosed or Relapsed? Stop Looking For a Miracle Cure, and Use Evidence-Based Therapies To Enhance Your Treatment and Prolong Your Remission
Multiple Myeloma an incurable disease, but I have spent the last 25 years in remission using a blend of conventional oncology and evidence-based nutrition, supplementation, and lifestyle therapies from peer-reviewed studies that your oncologist probably hasn't told you about.
Click the orange button to the right to learn more about what you can start doing today.
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Myeloma Survivor? Protect Your Heart.
Appropriate early management of CHD risk factors and stimulation of physical activity and supplementation may reduce CHD risk in multiple myeloma survivors.
The bad news is that if you underwent certain chemotherapy regimens to treat multiple myeloma your risk of heart disease increases annually. The good news? You can do something about it.
I am a multiple myeloma survivor who underwent several cardio-toxic chemotherapy regimens and developed chemotherapy-induced cardiomyopathy.
I underwent a chemo called adriamycin in the Spring/Summer of ’95 and
- cytoxan,
- busulfan and
- melphalan
in the Fall of the same year. All four of those chemotherapy regimens cause heart damage. I developed chronic atrial fibrillation in the fall of 2010.
Once I developed A-fib I began researching evidence-based, non-toxic therapies for heart health. The study linked and excerpted below cites exercise as a therapy. I do that daily in addition to nutrition and heart healthy supplementation.
The good news is that I just had a complete work-up with two different cardiologists over the past two months (fall of 2015). My echo, ekg, etc. tests confirm that my ejection fraction is stable. My distending aortic root has NOT grown since my last echo in 2006.
I’m not saying that my heart function is normal. I’m saying that my long list on non-coventional therapies such as frequent moderate exercise, CoQ10, omega 3 fatty acids and others, is keeping my chemo-induced heart damage from getting worse. Scroll down to read the many health benefits provided by omega-3 fatty acid supplementation.
To Learn More about Chemotherapy-induced Heart Damage- click now
I am both a MM survivor and MM cancer coach. For more information about therapies to manage chemo-induced or radiation-induced heart damage scroll down the page and post a question. I will reply ASAP.
thank you,
David Emerson
- MM Survivor
- MM Cancer Coach
- Director PeopleBeatingCancer
Recommended Reading:
- Multiple Myeloma Side Effects-Chemo-induced, Radiation-induced Muscle Atrophy
- Multiple Myeloma Chemotherapy- Heart Damage Increases Over Time
- Multiple Myeloma Side Effects- Revlimid Risks Blood Clot Despite Blood Thinners
Cardiovascular adverse events in multiple myeloma patients
Discussion- As opposed to other substance classes such as anthracyclines, proteasome inhibitors show distinct non-hematologic side effects. Bortezomib is mainly associated with mostly reversible neuropathy, ixazomib with gastrointestinal side effects, and carfilzomib with cardiotoxicity…
Although cardiotoxicity has been shown for both bortezomib and carfilzomib in preclinical data, clinical data did not reveal a significant increase of cardiovascular adverse events in patients treated with bortezomib or ixazomib, while carfilzomib use led to an increase in cardiac biomarkers and heart failure.
Preclinical studies have elucidated the underlying cardiac pathomechanisms of irreversible proteasome inhibition by carfilzomib. However, the molecular mechanisms are not yet fully understood, and only few cardioprotective strategies have been tested in preclinical studies and practically none in clinical studies.
Few case series have been published indicating that medication withdrawal or dose reduction and heart failure medication might reverse cardiomyopathy in some cases (23,52,53). Some of them report resolved cardiac dysfunction without discontinuation of carfilzomib (53). These findings have to be systematically confirmed in clinical studies. Meanwhile, cardiovascular toxicity under carfilzomib therapy could be addressed by reducing the dose, changing to bortezomib or ixazomib based regimens, and treating the cardiovascular side effects according to current guidelines (54,55).
So far, there is no risk stratification available. Baseline echocardiography, cardiovascular risk factors, and biomarkers are not conclusive when assessing the individual risk for cardiotoxicity (20,21)…
How I manage the toxicities of myeloma drugs
“The treatment of multiple myeloma is considered a continuously evolving paradigm as a result of the growing availability of new and highly effective drugs, including first- and second-generation proteasome inhibitors, immunomodulatory agents, and monoclonal antibodies…
Although the overall toxicity profile of the recommended regimens can be considered favorable, their increasing complexity and prolonged use warrant a heightened vigilance for early and late side effects, a priori because real-life patients can be more frail or present with 1 or more comorbidities…
Accurate knowledge in recognizing and managing the potential side effects of present-day treatment regimens is therefore a cornerstone in myeloma care. Using 5 case vignettes, we discuss how to prevent and manage the most common nonhematological adverse events of anti–myeloma treatment regimens containing proteasome inhibitors, immunomodulatory drugs, and monoclonal antibodies…”
The list of health benefits of omega-3 fatty acids (fish oil) listed below may seem endless. And it might seem impossible for daily dose of omega-3 fatty acids to provide all the of the health benefits below but its not.
I’m a long-term cancer survivor living with chemobrain, chemo-induced heart damage, radiation-induced nerve damage and a risk of treatment related secondary cancers. I believe that omega 3 fatty acid supplementation helps me maintain my health each and every day.
I take one capsule daily of Life Extension Super Omega 3 EPA/DHA with Sesame Lignans and Olive Fruit to insure all I get all of the health benefits below and I encourage you to do so as well.
Recommended Reading:
- Major Depressive Disorder (MDD), Curcumin, Omega 3 Fatty Acids
- Omega-3 fatty acids slow triple-negative breast cancer
- Omega 3’s beats Colorectal Cancer
- The Cure for Lung Cancer May Be in Fish Oil
17 Science-Based Benefits of Omega-3 Fatty Acids
- Omega-3s Can Fight Depression and Anxiety
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- 4. Omega-3s Can Improve Risk Factors For Heart Disease
- These include:
- Triglycerides: Omega-3s can cause a major reduction in triglycerides, usually in the range of 15–30% (25, 26, 27).
- Blood pressure: Omega-3s can reduce blood pressure levels in people with high blood pressure (25, 28).
- HDL-cholesterol: Omega-3s can raise HDL (the “good”) cholesterol levels (29, 30, 31)
- Blood clots: Omega-3s can keep blood platelets from clumping together. This helps prevent the formation of harmful blood clots (32, 33).
- Plaque: By keeping the arteries smooth and free from damage, omega-3s help prevent the plaque that can restrict and harden the arteries (34, 35).
- Inflammation: Omega-3s reduce the production of some substances released during the inflammatory response (36, 37, 38).
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Metabolic syndrome is a collection of conditions.
It includes central obesity (belly fat), high blood pressure, insulin resistance, high triglycerides and low HDL levels.
It is a major public health concern, since it increases your risk of developing many other diseases. These include heart disease and diabetes (51).
Omega-3 fatty acids can reduce insulin resistance and inflammation, and improve heart disease risk factors in people with metabolic syndrome (52, 53, 54).
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Inflammation is incredibly important. We need it to fight infections and repair damage in the body.
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Cancer is one of the leading causes of death in the Western world, and omega-3 fatty acids have long been claimed to reduce the risk of certain cancers.
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Asthma is a chronic lung disease with symptoms like coughing, shortness of breath and wheezing.
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Osteoporosis and arthritis are two common disorders that affect the skeletal system.
Studies indicate that omega-3s can improve bone strength by increasing the amount of calcium in bones. This should lead to a reduced risk of osteoporosis (87, 88).
Omega-3s may also help with arthritis. Patients taking omega-3 supplements have reported reduced joint pain and increased grip strength (89, 90).
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Menstrual pain occurs in the lower abdomen and pelvis, and often radiates to the lower back and thighs.
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Good sleep is one of the foundations of optimal health.
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EPA also benefits the skin in several ways, including (101, 102):
- Managing oil production in skin.
- Managing hydration of the skin.
- Preventing hyperkeratinization of hair follicles (the little red bumps often seen on upper arms).
- Preventing premature ageing of the skin.
- Preventing acne.
Omega-3s can also protect your skin from sun damage. EPA helps block the release of substances that eat away at the collagen in your skin after sun exposure (101).