March 2025

My name is Juliette Royer but I go by Jules.

I was diagnosed with multiple myeloma at the age of 47.  

In November of 2013, I booked a holiday to Jamaica with my girlfriends for February 2014, my birthday month. My family and friends know that I celebrate the whole month so I was going out to dinners and having fun!

November is also the month I have my annual physical. At my follow-up appointment, my doctor informed me that my blood pressure was elevated and that I had to wear a monitor for 24 hours to determine whether I needed a pill to regulate it. I wore the monitor to work and every time I heard a beep, I would have to stop what I was doing so the machine could take my blood pressure. Once my doctor received the results it was determined that I needed to start taking blood pressure medication.

Saturday afternoon, I went to the drug store with prescription in hand to fill and ask questions as to when I should take the pill. That night before bed I took my first one. The next morning, I got ready for church. During mass I felt unwell and since I had nothing to eat or drink, I figured I was having a reaction to the medication. I went home and pulled out the side effects sheet that came with the pills and began to check off most of them. I collapsed on the floor returning from the bathroom, and at that point, I knew I had to go to the hospital. I couldn’t drive and when I was unable to get hold of my sister, I called my neighbour.  

At the emergency department of the Milton District Hospital, I was examined and told to stop taking the medication. After giving me some fluids, they asked me to return the next day for an ultrasound. Monday morning, I called my manager at work, told him what had happened, and that I would be late.

Little did I know I would never return to work. 

After the ultrasound, they took my blood and informed me there was something going on with my kidneys. They drew blood a few more times and I provided them with a urine sample. That’s when they informed me I needed to be admitted and that they had also contacted a nephrologist at the Oakville Trafalgar Hospital for me. 

The ER doctor at Milton told me my creatinine level was almost 1,000, that I was in kidney failure, and I needed dialysis! My head was spinning. I couldn’t believe one pill could cause all of this.

The doctor kept asking me if I had felt unwell to which I replied “No, I have been celebrating my birthday all month with family and friends!”

I contacted my sister and told her what was going on. I asked her to tell my parents and friends.  

The next day I was taken to the Oakville Trafalgar Memorial Hospital via ambulance for my first dialysis treatment. Now that was an experience. I lay on a bed for about 6-8 hours with a machine hooked up to a port that had been inserted in my chest about half an hour before. I was told that this machine was removing waste and extra fluid from my blood as I had no kidney function. This was the beginning of my 3-week hospital stay and my cancer journey.  

The cause of my kidney failure was still unknown at this time, until the hematologist arrived. She performed a bone marrow biopsy that morning and later that day, she returned to inform me that I had multiple myeloma, a type of incurable blood cancer. 



Once I heard the word cancer, I didn’t hear anything she said after that. I was in tears. She consoled me and said she would return. I called my sister and asked her to tell my parents and our other siblings. My extended family was informed. Then I called my girlfriend in Guelph. We cried together and I asked her to let my other friends know. I needed all the prayers I could get.  

Before my hematologist returned a few hours later and informed me of the next steps, I went down the Google rabbit hole. Big mistake! But, I did find a link to Myeloma Canada! Unfortunately, it took me over a year to tap into their resources because I was busy dealing with all the implications and side effects that a myeloma diagnosis brings. 

To make a long story short, I was on dialysis for several months while also doing chemotherapy, which began on Dec 24, 2013.

The chemotherapy was to prepare me for my first stem cell transplant which took place in May of 2014 at the Juravinski Hospital in Hamilton. The nurses and doctors were great but I had a difficult time. I was there for 3 weeks.  

When I returned home, my mom came to stay with me. I was put on the chemo maintenance drug Revlimid and for 4 years it kept the cancer at bay. Unfortunately, the myeloma cells became uncontrollable again, and I started to prepare for my second stem cell transplant which took place at the Juravinski Hospital in March 2019. This time it was not as bad but still difficult; once more I was there for 3 weeks. Since the summer of 2019, I have been on another maintenance chemo drug called Ninlaro. 

I have had a lot of health issues living with this disease but I am currently in my 11th year, and grateful and hopeful for many more birthdays!  

Myeloma Canada became my ‘go to’ for information. It was through them and a call from the late Norma Lindner, Founder of the Halton-Peel and Area Myeloma Support Group in Oakville, that I realised I was not alone in the journey. 

Since my diagnosis I have not been able to return to work. In 2015, I joined the Halton-Peel Myeloma Support Group and shortly after became a member of their steering committee. I joined Norma and became co-leader.

Wanting to establish a support group closer to home in Guelph, I helped co-found the Waterloo Region Myeloma Support Group and served as co-leader at both for a few years. In 2021, after Norma’s passing, I stepped in as Support Group Leader for the Halton-Peel group.  

Over the years I have been involved in countless Myeloma Canada initiatives including volunteering at several Multiple Myeloma Marches and providing peer support. 

For a few years after my diagnosis, I was lost and felt I had no purpose. My dreams for my future had changed and I had a new reality. I soon realised that I did have a purpose and that was to help people. 

My days are spent doing volunteer work for my church, the Guelph community, and our support group. It seems that I am busier these days than I was when I worked at the office.

I don’t take things for granted. I spend as much time as I can with my family and friends. They have been my greatest supporters. My sister Tasha has been there from day one and still checks on me at least once a week, sometimes more.  

March is Multiple Myeloma Awareness Month and to me it is a time to inform the public on what myeloma is and what signs people should be looking for. It is also a time to reduce the stigma of a cancer diagnosis, especially within diverse communities. It is a time to connect people facing similar challenges. It is a time to advocate for change and inspire communities to take action regarding their health, and a myeloma diagnosis. 

Warmly, 

Jules 

Myeloma Canada charitable number: 862533296RR0001