A MMA and Beating Myeloma list friend sent me a fabulous bit of news yesterday morning via e-mail, as follows:
I was diagnosed with MGUS. Feb.06, m-spike 0.03, went up to 0.07, and then I took control, took all your advice and listened to my body. I worked my way to 5 grams of curcumin among other things. Reduced stress, soaked in 104 degree water twice a day. Last test before Dr’s appointment: 0.02. The day of appointment I had another test, just got it back: "NO monoclonal protein detected by the current electrophoresis study.
HURRAY!!! 
I asked her for permission to post her story here. She very kindly (thank you!) consented, also providing me with the details of her protocol.
She takes the following: Andrew Weil’s Daily Multivitamin, Daily Antioxidant, Immune System Builders that include ashwaganda, cordyceps, astragalus, Siberian ginseng – the quantities are prepackaged in an AM and PM dose.
She also takes: Life Extension Super Curcumin with Bioperine 800 mg, 3 pills in the morning and 3 in the afternoon. Lysine: 1000 mg, 1/day. Resvera Wine Complex 500 mg, which contains: grapeseed extract, ellagic acid, & resveratrol, 1/day. Guggul Plex 340 mg, 1/day. Zyflamend softgels by New Chapter, 1/day. Yaeyama Chlorella 400 mg., by Yarrow Formulas, 1/day.
She writes: I am anemic if I am not careful and I take Slow FE- 47.5 mg. slow release iron- doesn’t upset my stomach.
Every morning and afternoon, she soaks in a 104 degree hot tub for 35 to 45 minutes and, she adds, there I do nothing but soak- it was hard to learn.
She adds: “I eat lots of veggies, some fruit and meat 2 or 3 times weekly (salmon, or whatever I’m craving, meatloaf last week, buy organic whenever I can). If I crave an old evil food, I eat it- it’s usually not as satisfying as I remember, and it takes care of the craving, although I recently made a German chocolate cake.
Lots of nuts, focusing on walnuts- make my own chocolate bars by roasting walnuts and pouring Ghirardelli’s chocolate (bought at Trader Joe’s) over top, keep it in my freezer for a quick fix.
No coffee, diet anything, fast food. Use real butter (organic) and olive oil- did notice a difference for the better when I gave up Smart Balance. Try to keep all food real—very little pre-prepared. In spring and summer frequent my local farmer’s market. Juice carrots every other day, and buy Green food juice at Trader Joe’s. Drink tons of water.
I have early retired, and I now do projects that used to take 1 day. I now spread them out over 3 or 4 days. If I’m fatigued, I do nothing.
I’m careful to avoid stress, I have started saying no to volunteer situations.
I’m 58, I have neuropathy from the waist down -large areas of no temperature feeling- reflexes not strong below the waist- My doctors are now saying fibromyalgia just because they don’t know. But if I listen to my body I can do anything I want, just slower with planning- I used to be a construction worker and have worn out my spine.
Hope this helps.
Upon rereading this post, I must admit that the list of things that she takes is quite daunting. I don’t take anything except for curcumin, quercetin, flaxseed oil, black cumin oil and an occasional multivitamin (heavy on the B vitamins). That’s my current intake. My list pales in comparison with hers. Hmmm.
At any rate, she will continue to monitor her blood situation every four months for the next year, then will go to every six months. She believes that getting rid of stress has really helped her, as well as ignoring the reports that we shouldn’t build our immune systems. Well, this approach clearly worked in her case! In her own words: I do believe our society demands multi-tasking, major stress, the need to buy more, have more. I think my efforts at doing nothing helped reset my immune system and yes, I ignored those reports that you don’t want to build your immune system.
Speaking of immune systems. Incredible but true: yesterday I began feeling a bit ill. And it just so happens that tomorrow Sherlock and I are supposed to go to the hospital lab to have our Biocurcumax tests done. But this morning I am having chills and, can you believe it?, a low-grade fever. Needless to say, I am quite annoyed! But not too surprised, since all of my students have been ill, with fevers and colds and terrible coughs…SIGH! Che pazienza che ci vuole…Well, unless I get worse, I will go have my tests done anyway. Oh, bother!
my random thoughts on a cloudy relaxed day
Hooray! for the successful protocol
Boo! on the flu and fever
I listened to a radio broadcast last night regarding immune system “balance”. not too much, not too little. It was very interesting. I just spent 30 minutes trying to find the NPR podcast link, and haven’t yet. But it was the first hour long media, medical acknowledgment that I had heard that too little immunity is bad and too much is bad, need to find the balance. They listed helpful tips as getting enough sleep, get regular CRP tests to test for inflammation (which I have always had to argue to get). Some doctors hate the CRP tests cause it is only an inflammation marker and not a test that tells what is wrong. Some doctors like having that info to look for something if that test is very high. A study was done on med students that for every single hour of fatigue and not getting sleep, the CRP will rise.
Also breathing correctly, as in Yoga and meditation. If breathing is quick and shallow as in anxiety situations, the CRP goes up. And good news for the cat lovers of this blog, the broadcast stated that while animals expose us to more bacteria, that that is a good thing to do while we are still less immune compromised, to help build immunity. They listed about 20 helpful tips to reduce inflammation and discussed them all. I’d love to hear the broadcast again, so will keep looking. It was a book review interview with the author, also manages a Canyonland Spa.
off topic regarding MM, more about inflammation and immunity
Here is a link to the podcast I was referring too in my last comment or post. I’m sorry if it doesn’t work. Also, Margaret, look at what the next topic article was following the podcast link (about curcumin or turmeric)
http://www.peoplespharmacy.org/index.asp#
the name of the podcast was Ultralongevity
Book information is
Mark Liponis, MD, Corporate Medical Director of Canyon Ranch Resorts and author of UltraLongevity: The Seven-Step Program for a Younger, Healthier You. His previous book, with Dr. Mark Hyman, was Ultraprevention.
I just wanted to say that it was interesting to see the part about the hot baths. I believe that we can sweat out some toxins by using steam baths and hot baths. I really want to get back to that myself. It also helps relieve stress. 🙂 I’ve heard that folks with high blood pressure or other such problems should check with their docs about that first.
Beth, Hot baths usually depress your blood pressure. The same for sauna and steam baths. So if you have low blood pressure it can be a problem.
Margaret, I think that the person with Mgus is taking too many supplements. I don’t agree with such a strategy. You don’t need to throw a supplements-atomic bomb against a 0,07 Mgus! You don’t need to change completely your life because of Mgus. I would prefer to live AND ‘cure’ my Mgus/MM rather than to live TO ‘cure’ my Mgus/MM. This, at least, is my personal view. I ‘happily’ lived with Mgus for 17 years.
Furthermore, cancer cells are very smart. They learn easily to overcome their enemies. So if you use all the best supplements against Mgus what are you going to do when/if MM arises?
That said, what impressed me about this story is that probably curcumin can reverse Mgus (even if it’s difficolt to say, as the person in your story takes several substances). When you are dx with Mgus doctors usually follow the watch-and-see strategy. If they suggested to try curcumin, Mgus could probably be reversed, and a lot of problems and anxiety avoided.
UUPDATE-3/23/08- I had another blood test to see if the 0 m-spike held and as my Onc said it will go up and down -WELLLLLL it’s back to 0.02 so I’m not as sure I can get rid of this m-spike but I’m rabidly back to my regimine- Thanks to all -M
Hello Margaret – I was recently diagnosed with MM (2 1/2 months agao) and I’ve been taking Curcumin for the last month. However, I was disappointed in my last blood test which showed no improvement, just decline. Now I’m up to 10grams a day as of this week. However, I have been taking the capsules with Bioperene and a 100mg of fish oil. From what I’ve read on your site, you mix them with liquid. Is that correct? I would really appreciate your thoughts.
Thank you,
Tania