The fat pad biopsy was the worst experience I have had. Yes, he used lidocaine. Went in the first time and nothing came out. Went in the second time, but it was deeper and I felt like I was going to suffocate! Not really painful, but extremely uncomfortable and he did not seem to care. The bruising was ridiculous it looked like I had been abused for several weeks. They did the Congo red stain and diagnosed amyloidosis. I have had 2 bone marrow biopsies and did not feel an thing.
No one has mentioned an EMG test. Looks like one to avoid.

I have both AL amyloidosis and multiple myeloma. Seems to affect my kidney numbers. Diagnosed an October 2022. SCT March 2023. Have been in remission since. Treatment is now every 6 weeks with Velcade and DarzalexFasPro. May be moving them to 8 weeks after I consult with my specialist in January 2027.

Per my Dr today:

I have some updates about the kidney testing we sent when you were in clinic last week.

The urine testing came back looking good. No elevated protein or concern for infection. No evidence of any kidney problems at all, to be honest.

Because of this, I added another test your blood to try to characterize your kidney function. This is a little bit of insight baseball, but we calculate the GFR number using the creatinine number and a few other factors (age and gender). However, creatinine can be impacted by a bunch of things, including protein intake and muscle mass. Recently, the nephrologists have started using a different marker called cystatin C, which is less impacted by those confounders. Yours was 0.88. If you look below, you can see the different calculations of your renal function based on the cystatin C versus the creatinine versus a combination of the two. The cystatin C actually pain so really reassuring picture, with your GFR at 82.

Have you had any major changes to your diet in the past 6 months or so? In particular, have you started eating a lot more protein? That could explain some of which we're seeing.

Either way, I am re-assured that your kidneys are doing fine.

Best,

Dr. Slade

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Salli,
If you have a good doctor, you will not feel much at all. I had a fat pad biopsy and it was the easiest thing I have done. All you need is a little local numbing.
Paula🌹

Yes Salli she also has MM