Randy Kramer

In December 2020, Randy completed his annual physical at Olivia Hospital and Clinic. At that time, his primary physician noticed a slight abnormality in the standard blood test results. After further testing at OHC and Hutchinson Health Cancer Center, Randy received his diagnosis of multiple myeloma.

Multiple myeloma is a cancer of the plasma cells that reside in the bone marrow, which are the cells that help fight off infection. It is the 2nd most common blood cancer, affecting approximately 100,000 individuals annually. There is no cure yet, but there are several options that patients can use for treatment and management -- a stem cell transplant is one of these methods. 

Starting in January, Randy began his chemo treatments and completed his final cycle in early May. Today begins a new journey: starting the process of an autologous stem cell transplant at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, in which he will be using his own cells.

The process begins with priming and harvesting the stem cells that will be “cleaned” and eventually infused back into Randy’s bloodstream to create new, healthy blood cells. Between these two procedures, Randy will receive a high dose of chemo to kill remaining cancer cells as well as the blood producing cells in his body. By completing this procedure, called conditioning, the cleaned stem cells will hopefully “take” to his body after the procedure.

The process typically takes 6 weeks. Randy will be under the care of the Mayo Bone Marrow Transplant Team. We are hopeful that the process will result in remission and he will be back to cancer-free status shortly.

We are thankful for the prayers and support we have received from family, friends, and the community. We will use this site to provide updates on Randy’s health journey as he navigates the stem cell transplant process.

With Gratitude,
Randy, Linda, Leah, Ryan, and Rachel