Access Health® Helps Raise Awareness about Multiple Myeloma with Special Guest, Tom Brokaw

DEERFIELD BEACH, Fla. - March 15, 2016 - PRLog -- Access Health® is proud to announce a special, documentary-style show all about the rare blood and bone disease, Multiple Myeloma. The show airs on Wednesday, March 16, 2016 at 7:30 a.m. (ET/PT) on Lifetime®, with an encore presentation on Wednesday, March 23, 2016.

Host, Ereka Vetrini, travels to Cambridge, Massachusetts to sit down with James Bond (yes, James Bond!), who has survived a 23-year-long battle with Multiple Myeloma and is living proof that the disease is manageable. With his wife Kathleen at his side, James talks about the four stem cell transplants he's received, the clinical drug trial that reduced his cancer level by 99% in two weeks and the many other factors that have helped him manage this rare disease for the past 23 years. Kathleen adds that she found comfort in information, empowering herself by finding out everything she could, asking the hard questions and taking copious notes. Together, they have learned to make the most of this life, even with the understanding that there is still no cure and that the disease will inevitably come back.

On the heels of his book, "A Lucky Life Interrupted", Tom Brokaw also joins Access Health to share his journey. Tom was diagnosed in 2013 after going to see his doctor about persistent back pain. His advice to anyone going to see their physician?

"Do not treat him as the emperor of a Mayan temple. [Doctors] don't speak a different language. You must say to them, 'Doc, I just don't get what you're talking about. Talk to me in plain language.'"

He also recommends being upfront about getting a second, third or fourth opinion.

"Medicine is not math," he explains. "It's not 2+2=4. It's very subjective. Each doctor or physician will look at a particular case and generally have a slight variation on what's the best treatment."

Our third guest, Dr. Dixie Esseltine, MD, was part of a team that witnessed some of the first promising clinical trial results in Multiple Myeloma treatment. In the late 1990s, the first patient in the clinical drug trial had a complete response, meaning she was disease free when under the influence of the drug in the trial. Moving forward, Dr. Esseltine hopes to encourage people to keep supporting cancer research and increase awareness.

Cheryl Boyce, the fourth and final guest, is another survivor who has a similar outlook. While she admits that life with Multiple Myeloma is a struggle, she hopes that once anyone who gets diagnosed recovers from the initial shock, they take the steps to help resolve the disease for future generations.

About Multiple Myeloma

Multiple Myeloma is the second most common blood-born cancer with one of the lowest survival rates on record. The disease develops in the marrow and can be very difficult to diagnose due to its common symptoms: fatigue, back pain and anemia. The median age for most patients at diagnosis is 70, although Cheryl and James are both proof that it can manifest earlier. Depending on the age of the patient diagnosed, stem cell transplants and drug therapy are common treatment options. Today, there are approximately 229,460 people living with Multiple Myeloma worldwide. For more information, go to www.MMRF.org.

About Access Health

Access Health is a powerful and engaging half-hour health and wellness series premiering on the Lifetime channel, hosted by Ereka Vetrini who tackles the important fitness, medical and nutrition topics of the day. The show educates and entertains with ideas on the best ways to get your body moving, revolutionary cuisine and the newest medical practices, as well as research of rare diseases - all to empower women and give them access to healthier living solutions. To learn more about Access Health, please visit www.accesshealth.tv and like us on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/accesshealthtv?ref=br_tfhttps://www.facebook.com/accesshealthtv?ref=br_tf).