Factoids about Blood Cancer

I am continuing my campaign as part of the Blogging For Blood Cancer event. Below are some factoids that I found interesting and may help you to better understand this disease and the fight against it. I encourage you to do some research of your own and post some factoids to further educate me.

The American Cancer Society estimates that approximately 16,600 new cases of myeloma are diagnosed each year in the United States. Bone pain is the most common early symptom of myeloma. Most patients feel pain in their back or ribs, but it can occur in any bone. The pain is usually made worse by movement.

Bone marrow transplants are commonly being used today for the treatment of blood cancers and other maladies, and as the body regenerates its immune system after the process, nutritional needs are more important than ever. What are these needs, you may ask? Head over to The Diet Channel and find out.

Transplants of special cells in the blood stream may be more effective than bone marrow transplants in patients who receive high-dose chemotherapy for blood cancer, according to a large randomized trial reported in the New England Journal of Medicine on January 18, 2001(see the journal abstract).