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Thank you so much for your response. It’s just so hard to accept. I am healthy in every other aspect of my life and have not taken a prescription, ever, so this is a huge blow and I feel like something had to cause it. Please say something other than my age I’m 75.😉
Replies to "Thank you so much for your response. It’s just so hard to accept. I am healthy..."
@4kleo
I’m circling back and reading some posts I missed. First let me say that I’m 72 so don’t shoot the messenger when I say that age is a factor with MGUS. Typically, those diagnosed fall into the retirement age category. We don’t have the market covered completely as younger folks are diagnosed as well. Almost everyone who is diagnosed had an incidental diagnosis when they were looking for something else.
The etiology of MGUS is indeed a mystery. There is no known connection between vaccines or medications and MGUS. Maybe one day they will discover what causes it, but so far, they don’t know.
The good news is that the risk of progression to blood cancer is very low and you will get very good medical care with frequent blood analysis and other diagnostic tools so if you do get sick, you will get early diagnosis and treatment.
Do you mind letting me know when you will go back to see your doctor?
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Everyone has cellular mutations. The vast majority don't replicate, our bodies reject them. With MGUS, a deranged plasma cell took root in our bone marrow and replicates (hopefully very slowly). I've had MGUS for +8 years (no telling how long the mutated plasma cell has been illegally parked), am 70, and MGUS doesn't limit me. I still bike thousands of miles a year, volunteer, and have fun. Did something cause the deranged plasma cell? I'll never know. Here are some risk factors: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC2947966/#:~:text=The%20median%20age%20of%20diagnosis,are%20younger%20than%2040%20years.