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@mandm4evers

Thank you so much for your information. You make me feel much better.
Question- Why do you have to keep having the test over again? Does the results change? My thought was if the levels keep climbing upward then have it done. I did not realize you have to have done so many times.

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Replies to "Thank you so much for your information. You make me feel much better. Question- Why do..."

Hi @mandm4evers, I wasn’t sure if you’re responding to @gingerw or my reply regarding repetitive bone marrow biopsies. But that won’t change the answer. (Hint, in the future just toss in the person’s @name such as @mandm4evers and the person will get tagged. ☺️)

In my case I had an aggressive blood cancer called AML. During and after treatment for the cancer and after a bone marrow transplant, frequent tests were needed to make sure there were no more cancer cells and that my transplant worked.
Ginger’s story is different. She has multiple myeloma but the scenario is the same. Doctor’s use the marrow biopsies to go directly to the blood manufacturing source to rule out, diagnose or check the progression of a disease of the blood.

In your case, you have more protein in your blood than the norm, so they’re checking your core cells to see if they can detect an issue in the ‘factory’. ☺️ This may be the only one you need or, there may be a few more in your future depending on the results. It’s an invaluable diagnostic tool for a hematologist.
As you can see, each person’s situation is unique to them so no fretting about what ifs. 🙃 The thought of the biopsy is worse than they are in reality. Knowledge is power. So if your doctor is suggesting a bmbx, then it’s a good place to begin the investigation along with the lab work.
Does this make sense?

@mandm4evers As @loribmt said, I have multiple myeloma. I have had abnormal protein levels in blood and urine for decades. Going back to 1988, I have had more 24-hour urine collections than I can recall! The sophistication of testing and garnering accurate results over that time has been astounding. In 1988 the diagnosis of Systemic Lupus was the result of many types of testing and eliminating conditions based on results. In addition to the abnormal protein, later labs determined there was more going on when coupled with results I was used to seeing. It took an astute nephrologist who connected the dots and saw what others had failed to note, to get me on the correct track now, bless her heart! Yes, I still have the ultra-rare kidney disease officially diagnosed in 2015, and that is what is shutting down my kidneys. But it has no relation to multiple myeloma. The bone marrow biopsies offer an accurate insight to where my myeloma is at, what percentage of the blood plasma is affected, and allows the doctor to be accurate in his treatment. Because there is a kidney disease and the myeloma, the protocol is a bit different than it might be for someone else.

The Bence-Jones protein is what a doctor may be looking for in your urine, that might indicate a blood plasma issue. In my case, I do not have that, proving my kidney issue is separate from the myeloma.

Here is the link to Mayo Clinic's explanation of bone marrow biopsy: https://www.mayoclinic.org/tests-procedures/bone-marrow-biopsy/about/pac-20393117
Do you have any further question I can answer, or comfort I may offer to you?
Ginger