The exhilaration of reaching the
summit – it was ten below zero,
50 mph winds, but clear.
Taking Hope to the Top
RAISING AWARENESS FOR MULTIPLE MYELOMA
by Dr. Charles Wakefield
Photos courtesy of Dr. Charles Wakefield
community news
I am very active in a cycling club, the Knuckleheads, and to celeam 69 years old and recently retired from being the director
brate my retirement, they organized a four-day, 400-mile ride from
of a graduate residency program at Baylor College of Dentistry
Utopia, Texas, through the Hill Country, back to Colleyville in midfor the past 20 years. Additionally, I was diagnosed with mulJune. Hot, humid, just at the end of the incredible rain from the
tiple myeloma (MM) on a routine physical exam in December 2003
hurricane, more than 15,000
and told there was a 40%
feet of climbing the first two
chance I’d live four years. I was
days! One night, I was sitting
so busy with work, I didn’t have
outside watching deer come to
much time to worry about it,
feed, and – I was surprised my
but started an aggressive
cell phone connected – it’s
chemotherapy for the following
Dr. Brian Berryman, my Bone
nine months, then in August of
Marrow Transplant doctor,
2004 was told it was time for
asking me if I wanted to join a
my bone marrow transplant.
team sponsored
by the
Lots more chemo, surgeries
Multiple Myeloma Research
and fun stuff occurred, includFoundation (MMRF) on an
ing three weeks in the hospital
Mount Kilimanjaro is the highest free-standing
mountain in the world and the highest point on
expedition to climb Mount
for the transplant. The procethe African continent at 19,341 feet.
Kilimanjaro in Tanzania,
dure was successful, and as in
Africa. I gave my normal
all patients, MM doesn’t go
response for these types of
away, it comes back, which
adventures and simply said, “I’m in”, I just have to check with my
mine did in a few years, and maintenance chemo began. Funny
wife, whose first response was “You’re kidding”. Having said that,
thing, if you believe that attitude matters, and the psyche controls
my wife became a huge supporter of the entire process, making disthe soma to a large degree, when I decided to retire from my posiplays for the Baylor Sammons Bone Marrow Cl [