Multiple Myeloma Awareness Month: Raising Awareness, Sharing Stories With #MyelomaActionMonth

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March is Multiple Myeloma Awareness month, and to encourage individuals and groups to take action that positively impact this community, the International Myeloma Foundation (IMF) has launched Myeloma Action Month. This campaign aims to raise global awareness about multiple myeloma and aims to strengthen the connection between members of the multiple myeloma community.¹

IMF encourages those who want to participate to use #MyelomaActionMonth when sharing personal stories or experiences of those who were affected by the disease. The organization also encourages those to act through the worldwide social awareness initiative which centers on what multiple myeloma means to different people on an individual level.¹

“This March, Myeloma Action Month stands as a testament to the collective power of action. Myeloma Action Month isn't just about awareness; it's about empowering ourselves, our loved ones, and the global community to fight back. We rise for the countless individuals who face this disease head-on, the care partners who are our rocks, the researchers who are relentlessly seeking breakthroughs, and the advocates using their voices to demand change. Every voice raised and every step taken brings us closer to a future free from myeloma,” said Yelak Biru, president and CEO of IMF and a survivor of myeloma for 28 years, in a press release. “Together, we can empower patients to navigate their journeys confidently, accelerate research toward a cure, and shatter the silence surrounding this disease.”¹

With the goal of raising awareness for the disease--which is the second most common blood cancer--in 2009, IMF declared March Myeloma Awareness Month. With the support of the Global Myeloma Action Network (GMAN), IMF will continue to engage the myeloma community globally by encouraging those with the disease to share their stories.^1,2

"The power of coming together as a global community to collectively raise awareness for myeloma is as important as it is exciting. As diverse as we are as individuals, myeloma doesn’t care. It knows no borders and does not discriminate against who you are, where you live, what race, ethnic, linguistic, gender, or other group with which you identify,” stated Martine Elias, executive director at Myeloma Canada, in the press release.¹

The IMF noted that people can become involved in the campaign by using the #MyelomaActionMonth when sharing stories—whether it focuses on patients, caregivers, health care workers, or anyone impacted by multiple myeloma—on social media. Participants can also get involved by joining online and in-person events that include livestreams and 5K run and walk events. In addition, individuals are strongly encouraged to include the hashtag #GMANmad17—the previous hashtag for IMF’s prior campaigns—to continue to raise awareness on the first International Myeloma Action Day on March 30, 2024.¹

“This March, let us all take action for Myeloma Action Month and shine a bright light on the collective strength of our global myeloma community…let us celebrate the courage, hope, and resilience of those living with myeloma; uplift their stories; and offer our unwavering support to patients, care partners, researchers, and health professionals across the globe,” said Emma Hatcher, global vice president for patient engagement and advocacy at IMF, in the press release. “Together, we are united in our commitment to a future free from myeloma.”¹

REFERENCES

1. International Myeloma Foundation. International Myeloma Foundation (IMF) Launches #MyelomaActionMonth for 2024 March Myeloma Action Month. News release. February 27, 2024. Accessed March 11, 2024. https://www.myeloma.org/news-events/multiple-myeloma-news/international-myeloma-foundation-launches-march-myeloma-action-month

2. Journal of Oncology Navigation & Survivorship. This Year, March’s Myeloma Awareness Month Is Myeloma Action Month. News release. March 4, 2016. Accessed March 11, 2024. https://www.jons-online.com/multiple-myeloma?view=article&artid=1408:this-year-marchs-myeloma-awareness-month-is-myeloma-action-month