Whole body

What It Is

Myeloma (sometimes known as multiple myeloma) is a type of cancer that affects the blood and bone marrow, the soft tissue inside bones where blood cells are made (NHS, 2025a). It is not a primary bone cancer, although it often damages the bones.

Multiple myeloma accounts for about 1% of all cancers (Rajkumar, 2024). The American Cancer Society estimates that about 36,000 new cases will be diagnosed in the United States in 2026, and that about 10,850 people will die from it (American Cancer Society, 2026). The disease is most common in older people: less than 1% of cases are diagnosed in people younger than 35, and the average age at diagnosis is 69 (American Cancer Society, 2026). Myeloma is slightly more common in men than in women, and it is twice as common in African Americans as in white Americans (Rajkumar, 2024).

Multiple Myeloma Anatomy

Myeloma starts in plasma cells, a type of white blood cell found in the bone marrow. Healthy plasma cells make antibodies, which are proteins that help the body fight infection. In myeloma, the bone marrow makes plasma cells that do not work properly (NHS, 2025a). These abnormal cells produce large amounts of an abnormal antibody protein. No one is quite sure what causes this change in the cells.

Myeloma isn’t confined to a specific location or bone. It usually affects the bone marrow in several places, which is why it is often called multiple myeloma. It can also affect other parts of the body, including the kidneys and the immune system (NHS, 2025a). On X-rays and scans, the bone damage can show up as areas where the bone has been destroyed, called lytic lesions (Rajkumar, 2024).

If only one area of abnormal plasma cells is found, it is referred to as a solitary plasmacytoma (Rajkumar, 2024).

Supportive Care

Supportive care is crucial. It includes pain control, comfort measures and help to keep you as active and independent as possible, as well as managing anaemia, infections, bone disease, kidney problems and pain caused by the condition itself. If your myeloma cannot be cured, you will be referred to a palliative care or symptom control team, who will work with you to manage your symptoms and help you feel more comfortable (NHS, 2025b).

Not a diagnosis — for more information, contact me or another trusted healthcare provider.

Treatment

Self-Care & Treatment

How to Treat Multiple Myeloma

I don't treat the myeloma itself, but with your specialist team's okay I can offer gentle, adapted massage for comfort and relaxation, and help you stay active safely. See the My Approach tab for how I work.

Myeloma cannot usually be cured, but it can be managed with treatment (NHS, 2025a). The treatment you have depends on things such as whether the myeloma is causing symptoms, whether it has come back, and your age and general health. Sometimes you may not need any treatment straight away (NHS, 2025b). Treatment for myeloma has changed a lot in recent years, and newer medicines have improved outcomes (Rajkumar, 2024). Your specialist team will explain the treatments, their benefits and side effects, and work with you to make a treatment plan (NHS, 2025b). Always follow your specialist team's own advice.

Treatments you may want to discuss with your family doctor, nurse practitioner or medical team

Options outside my scope

Chemotherapy: medicine that kills cancer cells (NHS, 2025b).
Steroids: medicines that can treat myeloma and help chemotherapy and targeted medicines work better (NHS, 2025b).
Targeted medicines: medicines that kill cancer cells; first treatment today often combines several medicines, such as bortezomib, lenalidomide and the steroid dexamethasone, sometimes with an antibody medicine such as daratumumab (NHS, 2025b; Rajkumar, 2024).
Stem cell transplant: a treatment where your own stem cells are collected, and then given back after a course of treatment, to help your body make new blood cells; it may be considered for people in good general health (NHS, 2025b; Rajkumar, 2024).
Radiotherapy: uses beams of radiation to kill cancer cells, and may be used for bone pain that has not improved with other treatments, or for bones that have broken or are at high risk of breaking (NHS, 2025b; National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, 2016).
Bisphosphonates: medicines that can stop or slow down damage to your bones (NHS, 2025b; National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, 2016).
Pain relief: your team may prescribe painkillers, including opioid painkillers, to control pain from bone damage (National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, 2016).
Vaccinations: people with myeloma should be offered the seasonal flu vaccine, and a pneumococcal (pneumonia) vaccine may also be offered (National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, 2016).
Immunoglobulin therapy: antibodies given through a drip, which may be considered for people with low antibody levels who keep getting infections (National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, 2016).
Erythropoietin medicines: may be considered to improve tiredness in people whose anaemia (low red blood cells) is causing symptoms (National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, 2016).

How I can help (see the My Approach tab)

Gentle, adapted massage for comfort and relaxation, with your team's okay
Light pressure and careful positioning to protect your bones
Help staying active within your team's limits

Tips

If you have any questions or worries about your treatment, talk to your specialist team (NHS, 2025b).
Myeloma can weaken your bones so that they break easily (NHS, 2025b). Make sure anyone treating you, including me, knows you have myeloma.
Tell your specialist team promptly about any new symptoms, especially new pain. NICE advises that people with myeloma are told how to spot and report signs of spinal cord compression (pressure on the spinal cord) (National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, 2016); ask your team what to look out for and when to call 911 or go to the emergency room at your nearest hospital.
Ask your team about vaccinations, as infections are more likely with myeloma (National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, 2016).

Treatment

My Approach

Myeloma is treated by your specialist team, and massage doesn't treat the cancer. I offer gentle, adapted care to help you feel more comfortable and stay as active as you safely can. During active treatment, I need your team's okay before hands-on work, and with your written consent I can ask them about any limits.

Please bring any X-ray or scan reports and notes from your medical team to your first visit. They're an important part of planning safe treatment for you.

Each visit starts with your energy, pain and any recent treatment, and I assess how you move and where you're sore.

Gentle, Adapted Care

Light pressure throughout, with no deep work over painful or affected bones
No forceful joint work, springing of the ribs or spine, or stretching hard at the end of a movement
Plenty of pillows so you're well supported, and shorter sessions on tired days
Slow, relaxing massage, with breathing and relaxation
Gentle lymphatic drainage for swelling, with your team's okay

Staying Active

Gentle walking and light strength work within your team's limits, avoiding heavy lifting and twisting while bending
Home visits if travelling is hard

If you have a fever or feel unwell, we'll rebook. New pain, numbness or weakness should go to your specialist team promptly (see Tips).

What to Expect

Typical Course

Typical course: Your specialist team's treatment plan sets the pace. Most people come weekly or every two weeks, with a check-in about every 4 to 6 weeks. Care is ongoing, and gains in comfort and activity usually build gradually over several weeks.

What I Focus On

Working With Your Team

Bone-Safe Pressure

Comfort & Relaxation

Gentle Activity

Ongoing Support

Sources

References

NHS (2025a) What is myeloma?. Available at: https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/myeloma/what-is-myeloma/ (Accessed: 7 October 2026).
NHS (2025b) Treatment for myeloma. Available at: https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/myeloma/treatment/ (Accessed: 7 October 2026).
Rajkumar, S.V. (2024) 'Multiple myeloma: 2024 update on diagnosis, risk-stratification, and management', American Journal of Hematology, 99(9), pp. 1802–1824. doi: 10.1002/ajh.27422.
American Cancer Society (2026) Key statistics about multiple myeloma. Available at: https://www.cancer.org/cancer/types/multiple-myeloma/about/key-statistics.html (Accessed: 7 October 2026).
National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (2016, updated 2018) Myeloma: diagnosis and management (NG35). Available at: https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng35/chapter/Recommendations (Accessed: 7 October 2026).

Massage therapy · Kitchener–WaterlooMultiple Myeloma

What It Is

Multiple Myeloma Anatomy

Supportive Care

Self-Care & Treatment

How to Treat Multiple Myeloma

Treatments you may want to discuss with your family doctor, nurse practitioner or medical team

Tips

My Approach

Gentle, Adapted Care

Staying Active

Typical Course

References

Related Conditions

Book a session

Massage therapy · Kitchener–WaterlooMultiple Myeloma

What It Is

Multiple Myeloma Anatomy

Supportive Care

Self-Care & Treatment

How to Treat Multiple Myeloma

Treatments you may want to discuss with your family doctor, nurse practitioner or medical team

Tips

My Approach

Gentle, Adapted Care

Staying Active

Typical Course

References

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Anterior Wedge Fracture to the Vertebra

Bone Tumor

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

Book a session