Myeloma (cont.)

Next Steps

Follow-up

After primary therapy for myeloma is complete, all appropriate diagnostic tests, including bone marrow aspiration and biopsy, are repeated to determine how well the therapy worked.

• The results of these tests will determine whether a remission has occurred.
  
  
• If the patient is in remission, the oncologist will recommend a schedule of regular testing and follow-up visits to monitor the remission and identify early relapse.
  
  
• Maintaining constant vigil via follow-up exams and tests is no less important than the therapy itself.

For cases in which myeloma does not go into complete remission after treatment, or if it recurs after treatment, the hematologist/oncologist will likely recommend further treatment.