Create your Personal Health Record and unlock support built around you

Aligned with your diagnosis, treatment and where you are in your care. It lets HealthTree show you:

Treatments and trials you qualify for
Education for your stage of care
Financial support for your medications
Solutions to your side effects

Learn more about HealthTree

Video

Is myeloma the same as multiple myeloma?

Posted by

HealthTree

• February 11, 2025

Description

Is Myeloma the Same as Multiple Myeloma?

Have you ever wondered if “myeloma” and “multiple myeloma” mean the same thing? In this video, we break down the terminology, explain what multiple myeloma is, and clear up any confusion surrounding the name. Whether you're newly diagnosed, supporting a loved one, or simply curious, this video will help you understand why the term “multiple” is used and what it really means for patients.

On this video

Faith Davies, MBBCh, MCRP, MD FRCPath, Specialist

Perlmutter Cancer Center at NYU

Transcript

Is myeloma the same as multiple myeloma?

Myeloma and multiple myeloma are the same thing. We're just very lazy doctors. And so often we use the two terms completely interchangeable. I think one of the important things is actually the multiple part of multiple myeloma, because it really explains why so many patients are different. No single patients myeloma is the same, and that's the important bit about the multiple myeloma. The original reason the multiple was actually in there, though, was because it was found on X-rays and patients had lots of different lesions on their X-rays. So that's where that term came from. But we're just lazy and sometimes we call it myeloma, sometimes we call it multiple myeloma.

Related Content