Linda Huguelet, co-leader of Chattanooga Multiple Myeloma Networking Group, and Susie Novis Durie, president and co-founder of the International Myeloma Foundation
For the 5th consecutive year, Linda Huguelet, co-leader of the Chattanooga Multiple Myeloma Networking Group, is joining over 25,000 hematologists and healthcare professionals from around the world at the 59th American Society of Hematology Annual Meeting and Exposition. The meeting is being held in Atlanta Dec. 8-11.
Ms. Huguelet was selected by the International Myeloma Foundation from over 150 support group leaders in the United States. She will be one of 11 support group leaders on the IMF’s team this year.
While at the conference, Ms. Huguelet will be brought up-to-date on the latest research, therapies, and tools available to myeloma patients. In turn, she will report the news to patients back home, using social media tools like blogs, Twitter, and video. Follow her on Twitter at @LindaMYELOMA and read her blogs by visiting MyelomaChattanooga.org and clicking on the ASH logo. Her first blog was inspired by the Ironman races held in Chattanooga this year.
The IMF is the oldest and largest organization dedicated to improving the life and care of myeloma patients around the world. Myeloma, also called multiple myeloma, is a cancer of cells in the bone marrow that affects production of red cells, white cells and stem cells and can damage bone. It’s currently incurable and is being contracted by an increasing number of people and is particularly affecting younger people.
Ms. Huguelet, a Signal Mountain resident, has been dealing with myeloma for over seven years and has taken numerous treatments since her diagnosis. Many myeloma patients, like Ms. Huguelet, are constantly on some type of therapy to keep the cancer under control. She is currently being treated with a relatively new immunotherapy drug that was not even on the horizon in 2010 when she was diagnosed.
She said, “The drive among the researchers to treat and ultimately find a cure for myeloma is inspiring and encouraging. At the ASH conference, I’m able to witness the progress and passion firsthand.”
She will pass along the highlights of the research taking place when the Chattanooga Multiple Myeloma Networking Group meets after the first of the year. The Chattanooga Multiple Myeloma Networking Group meets the second Thursday of each month at 6 p.m. Meetings are held at the Memorial Center for Cancer Support located next to Memorial Hospital. Visit MyelomaChattanooga.org for more information on the group which provides information and support to patients and caregivers in the Chattanooga/North Georgia area.