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Dr. Andrew Rynne
MD
Dr. Andrew Rynne

Family Physician

Exp 50 years

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Are Iron Supplements Effective In Combating Weakness In A Blood Cancer Patient?

My dad is 73 he has diabetes on insulin.he also has multiple myloma Blood cancer and very anemic.he has chemo and couple of blood transfusions last year but decided when he was left with nerve pain and tingling in legs and trunk from chemo he wouldnt have any more.drs thought the myloma was affecting kidneys as paraprotein was high.that went from 36-12 after chemo however aug 2014 was back to 63.we are just tryg to give him better quality of life. I mentioned to them shouldn t he been on iron supplements however they have never put him on them.he has got weaker sleepier and no energy.he was on fentanyl patches but now off those and just on gabapentin and frusomide plus insulin.the myloma wasnt affecting kidneys it was that he had diabetes for fifteen years.so had chemo for no reason . I thought I would try iron supplements and b12 to see if symtoms improve.
Tue, 10 Feb 2015
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General & Family Physician,  's  Response
Thanks for contacting HCM. With multiple myeloma the bone arrow is being invaded by cancerous tissue this replaces the normal bone marrow and reduces the bodies ability to make red blood cells. Giving iron may help a little bit but in the long run may actually cause too much iron in the body. I can safely recommend that he take one iron supplement daily but not more. Vitamin B 12 supplements will also not be helpful. To become vitamin B 12 deficient a person would have to have a very poor diet or have absorption problems. He can get enough Iron and Vitamin B12 from taking a daily multivitamin with iron.

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Are Iron Supplements Effective In Combating Weakness In A Blood Cancer Patient?

Thanks for contacting HCM. With multiple myeloma the bone arrow is being invaded by cancerous tissue this replaces the normal bone marrow and reduces the bodies ability to make red blood cells. Giving iron may help a little bit but in the long run may actually cause too much iron in the body. I can safely recommend that he take one iron supplement daily but not more. Vitamin B 12 supplements will also not be helpful. To become vitamin B 12 deficient a person would have to have a very poor diet or have absorption problems. He can get enough Iron and Vitamin B12 from taking a daily multivitamin with iron. I hope this answers your question. Please contact HCM again with your health care concerns and questions or if you need additional information