I don’t think the 5 year number applies to those who are under 70. I am 65 and going on year 12 with MM and I am doing better now than when I was first diagnosed. The new chemo”s seem to have way less side effects and I sure do not miss spending half a day in the infusion chair. Most of the younger people with MM that I know have similar stories.

Karen it is overwhelming and there’s no road map for any of us. I’m 2 years out from my SCT and am on the lowest dose of Revlimid (2.5) and my counts are so low that I’ve been taken off for 30 days. My MM is currently in remission and I am thankful every month when my labs show the same. Every day is a gift, I too am 69. I stay active, my old bones hurt from arthritis which I believe was ramped by my SCT, but I do yoga & resistance training and it helps. I never miss an invitation to travel, going at my own pace. Give yourself a year to digest all the scary stuff you read & then forget about it. I told my oncology team that I’m going to let them worry about my numbers & they need to call me when it’s my turn to worry!! You’ve got this.

I'm new to this site and putting in my two cents...lol
Everyone on here is way above me in their journey knowledge..I don't understand alot of the terminology and all of the available treatment. One, it's overwhelming and even after 1 year of having MM, I do not think I've fully accepted I have this disease. It's like when I wake up I think "oh yeah, I'm sick and have an incurable disease ". There are days I feel so normal that I could swear they have me misdiagnosed or either I'm cured BUT the realization hits me like a ton of bricks when I hurt so bad and all I want to do is lay around and sleep..I thought those days were much less and they are but when they come for some reason I'm surprised all over again. Can anyone relate to this. I too had never heard of MM until I was diagnosed. Was told its a black male disease, yet I'm a small white female age 69 and wonder how did I get this?? Life expectancy is up for discussion because I read things, then told differently. I applaud Mark in his 12 years of enduring this disease. Many people live a very long time, but what's out there in the media says maybe 5 years if we stay stable after 1 year ( I think that's what I read). I think the biggest thing is not knowing what is next and can we get siked up to handle the next hurdle. If we knew that the next big thing was actually going to be no big deal, my stress would be less. Overall I do amazingly according to my great team of friends and family but I'm not used to being down and having to guess about everything. Im.not used to having to ask for help. God knows everything and as a believer I know what is required of me but I struggle in doing it. Wasted energy is not best for any of us. Thank you for listening and caring. I have not gotten all the page format down and how and when to post. Please overlook my learning curve.

I am 80 years old, diagnosed last Feb. Been on Revlimid and Velcade and dexamethasone since then. No side effect5s to these meds, but when they added Zometa, , it really knocked me down for a couple of days. Not so bad now. I know I feel better, less fatigue and shortness of breath , then when I started this journey.
I am very lucky in that I have no pain. I do get tired easily so have hired a lady to come in once a week to do the heavy housework. My husband does what he can, but he has his own health problems that limit what he can do--he is a good cook though and does most of the cooking.
Because I am 80 YO, every day is a gift anyway, so I don't worry much about what ever time I have left. I just try to live my life as happy as possible and and do what I can.

There are five women within a 20 mile radius of me with MM. I had never heard of MM till I was diagnosed. All of us were diagnosed within a year of one another, all about the same age- late 40’s early 50’s. For a disease that is supposed to be men, African American and over 65 I find it a bit odd.