According to Myeloma Canada, eight people in this country are diagnosed with that form of cancer every day and there is no cure.
On Sunday, people in Sault Ste. Marie came together for a walk aimed at raising awareness of the rare disease.
They belong to a small, but rare and growing community in Sault Ste. Marie, a community that no one really wants to be part of.
"Everyone here probably has or knows someone who multiple myeloma." said Pam Orchard.
For the seventh year in a row, a walk was held to raise money for research.
Multiple myeloma is a cancer of the plasma cells in the blood and they congregate in the bone marrow, so it causes issues with your bones and immune system.
Three years ago, at age 57, Brian Panek was diagnosed with cancer.
"I collapsed at work and I thought I had a heart attack. And when I got to the hospital, and they said it wasn't a heart attack, and I had some sort of cancer." said Panek.
Since then, Panek's life has changed.
His movement has slowed and he walks with a cane.
"For us, we've found myeloma to be a very busy cancer. We've spent the last three years in and out of hospitals. We've traveled to Ottawa, Toronto, and Sudbury and spent quite a bit of time in hospitals there." said Brian’s wife Faith.
The disease typically affects older people and there is no cure.
With the baby boomer population aging, more people are being diagnosed with multiple myeloma every year.
"It has grown national and in Sault Ste. Marie as well. I would say, in five to six years ago, there might have been 25-30 people. Now we are looking closer to 50 in the sault." said Orchard.
She adds that most people diagnosed with the disease five years ago are no longer living.
With more money being spent on research, the life expectancy has risen to over 10 years, whichmakes events like the fundraising walk more important than ever.
