Alyssa Dickey began experiencing ‘soul crushing’ fatigue, numbing and pain in her hands and feet. These symptoms, lasted for two years until she fainted at work and was sent to the emergency room. After a series of tests, Alyssa was diagnosed with multiple myeloma, a little-known and incurable blood cancer of the plasma cells. She was 32.

Before starting her chemotherapy treatments, Alyssa decided to freeze her embryos. Shortly afterward, she had a stem cell transplant that put her in remission for seven years. It was during that time that Alyssa gave birth to her son, Elliot, who is now four years old.

Unfortunately, that period of stability ended when Alyssa relapsed in 2017 and received a second stem cell transplant. She is now relatively stable and on a maintenance therapy program.

Alyssa is determined to do her part to help create awareness and raise funds for myeloma so that research continues to stay one step ahead of the disease and new drug therapies continue to be developed until a cure is found. Alyssa and her family will be leading the 8th annual Mississauga Myeloma March, which will take place on Sunday, September 22, at 8:30 A.M., starting at the Meadowvale Community Centre.

“My son is my main reason for marching,” she says. “I’m benefitting from the work that researchers do, and I want to do my part to increase awareness of myeloma and get more treatments approved for patients.”

Mississauga is one of a record 28 communities across Canada participating in the Multiple Myeloma March. Mississauga’s financial objective is $40,000.

For more information about the Multiple Myeloma March or myeloma, please visit: myelomamarch.ca or myeloma.ca