The BOTTOM LINE: Patients should consult with a myeloma expert. The IMF InfoLine can assist with finding a myeloma expert near you.
Please note that Ask Dr. Durie has been discontinued, and it was designed to address myeloma questions of the broadest possible audience interest. If you have a question of a personal nature, please contact our InfoLine Coordinators at 800.452.2873 or [email protected] (Please do not send email attachments or lab reports.).
This week's "Ask Dr. Durie" is a recurring question from a patient who asks: "Should I see a myeloma expert?"
And obviously, this is something that is constantly coming up as a possibility, and the answer is a definite yes. If it is feasible to do, see an expert and get that extra input in reaching good decisions. This is particularly important at the time of initial diagnosis.
It can be good to confirm the diagnosis and make sure that active myeloma has occurred, and then to have good input in selecting the best first treatment.
As the journey in managing myeloma is beginning, it's important to look at both the test results as well as the whole range of treatment options, note if the situation is at a point of relapse—this can be particularly important to get expert input to confirm number one, that relapse is occurring, but also to review what are many, many options at the point of relapse, including immune therapies, which may be in clinical trials as well as some already approved by the FDA.
And so, the BOTTOM LINE is that seeing an expert is a good idea, if feasible. And I recommend to patients, please call the IMF InfoLine who can assist you and give guidance about help with your doctor and who can maybe arrange a consultation—or a virtual consultation. This must be coordinated through your doctor who can be part of that whole decision process.
Dr. Brian G.M. Durie (1942-2025) was the co-founder of the IMF. He was a Professor of Medicine, Hematologist/Oncologist, and Honoree MD at the University of Brussels.
