Russell Cole suffered four years of pain, particularly in his back, before his sister told him he had to find out what was wrong.
Russell, who was 53 at the time, had been to the same GP for many years and although he felt loyal to him, he decided to see another GP who knew straight away that something was seriously wrong.
“The new doctor said that he thought I might have myeloma, and after I had blood tests, my specialist confirmed this,” says Russell.
Russell’s specialist helped him understand every treatment option available to him and although he knew he was facing a challenge, the positivity of his specialist put Russell’s nerves at ease.
“I had never heard of myeloma or blood cancer so I just had to believe it was all in the hands of my health professionals and they would do what was best for me,” says Russell.
Russell decided he would not be the type of person who sat around and dwelled on his diagnosis or ‘what ifs’ and instead focused on the challenge ahead with positivity and a belief in himself and his health professionals.
“I don’t have a bucket list, but I did set myself a goal of making it to my great niece’s 21st birthday who was three at the time. So I just need to make it to the age of 77,” says Russell.
From the day he was diagnosed, Russell said his sister told him she would be there for him, and she was true to her word. Through 21 days of radiation, 36 weeks of chemotherapy, weekly blood tests and many more appointments she was there by his side and never missed one appointment.
“I’m very lucky for the family support that I had and especially for my sister. She gave up work to care for me, drove me everywhere and pulled my head in whenever I needed it,” says Russell.
Four days into his stem cell transplant, side effects from the treatment set in, and he ended up in hospital for three weeks.
“I really did think it would be a piece of cake then it all hit me, and I was in 24-hour care. Thankfully, the nurses in the haematology ward were fantastic; caring for me through the worst of the treatment.
“I suffered quite badly from ear pain, chest issues and I lost feeling in my feet, but I put it into perspective and told myself if that was all I had to deal with then I had nothing to really worry about,” says Russell.
When Russell underwent a stem cell transplant, both his sisters were there to support him and help him take in all the information he needed to know.
“Right before my stem cell transplant, I met an 11-year-old girl in the hospital who was battling cancer too. Just before I went to leave she looked at me and said ‘Mister, you’re going to be okay’.
“I didn’t even get her name but she said it with such confidence that I believed I would be okay,” say Russell.
When Russell got in touch with Rochelle Mills, the Auckland LBC Support Services Coordinator, he was at first dubious about attending support groups.
“When Rochelle invited me to an LBC support group I was very honest with her and I told her how I had taken a very positive outlook and I was nervous the group would focus on the negatives of blood cancer.
“A soon as I got there, I felt the positivity. There was no moping and no talk of sickness, and I met others who had lived with myeloma for 20 years which was really inspiring,” says Russell.
Russell looks back at his diagnosis and the years that have followed, and he sees how it has changed him for the better.
“I thought to myself here’s me with a bit of cancer, but who cares when I’ve got a great family support system around me.
“I’m a much stronger person because of my diagnosis, and I know I’m one of the lucky ones!”