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The most common symptoms are:
- bone pain - often in the back, and sometimes in other parts of the body such as the ribs, neck, arms or legs. Myeloma cells make a substance that weakens bones, and this is what causes the pain. Patients often describe it as dull and aching.
- anaemia (too few red blood cells). This can make you feel tired, breathless and lacking in energy.
- constipation, nausea and drowsiness – myeloma can increase the level of calcium in the blood, causing these problems.
Less common symptoms are:
- infections – you may get more of them than usual, or find them hard to get rid of.
- bruising and bleeding – this is because the myeloma reduces the number of platelets in the blood. (Platelets are the cells that help blood to clot.)
- Numbness and tingling in the feet, and difficulty in passing urine – these are signs that the spinal cord is compressed. This may happen because a tumour is pressing on the spine, or because the myeloma has thinned the bones and caused a vertebra to collapse. (A vertebra is a bone in the back.) Contact your doctor straight away if you have these symptoms.
