The Oncology team at Forth Valley Royal Hospital has scooped a national award for its commitment to patients living with incurable blood cancer.

Staff were presented with the Myeloma UK Clinical Service Excellence Programme (CSEP) Award in recognition of their outstanding care and dedication to people with myeloma, an incurable blood cancer which claims the lives of 3,000 people in the UK each year.

They were praised for their efforts to improve patients’ quality of life and eagerness to listen to their needs.

The accolade, awarded by blood cancer charity Myeloma UK, recognises hospitals’ commitment to raising the bar for treatment and providing compassionate care.

Dr Robbie McNeil, Consultant Haematologist and Clinical Director for Diagnostics at NHS Forth Valley, said: “We are absolutely delighted to receive this award from Myeloma UK, which is a testament to the dedication and compassion of our haematology team. Caring for people living with myeloma can be complex, and we are committed to listening to our patients, tailoring support to their needs, and ensuring they receive the highest standard of personalised care. This recognition is a real honour and reflects our continued focus on improving the quality of life for patients and their families across Forth Valley.”

Myeloma is especially hard to spot as the symptoms are often vague and dismissed as ageing or other minor conditions.

By the time many patients are diagnosed, their cancer has often advanced and they require urgent treatment. This can significantly impact their chances of survival and quality of life.

Rhys Owens, Senior Clinical Practice Officer at Myeloma UK, said: “Myeloma is a challenging cancer which keeps coming back and can be difficult to cope with both physically and mentally, so patients really need a caring team in their corner.

“It’s very clear that staff at NHS Forth Valley go the extra mile every day to help patients navigate treatment and the reality of living with an incurable cancer.

“They provide invaluable support and are always on hand to signpost other services, like physiotherapy, lend an ear and offer advice to patients and their families.

“Staff also work closely with departments across the hospital so patients can manage the many complications caused by their cancer, including heart and kidney issues.”

Beverley Johnston, 67, from Dennyloanhead, was diagnosed with myeloma in October 2024, after years of excruciating back, chest and leg pain.

At the time her cancer was diagnosed, her pelvis was broken in five places and she had holes, known as lesions, in her bones.

A year on from her diagnosis, the mother-of-two continues to defy the odds, and she has now thanked staff for supporting her through the rollercoaster of treatment and allowing her to see her son get married this month.

“It was really hard at the start,” recalls Beverley. “My pelvis was fractured in five places, I had a lot of lesions in my bones. I remember sitting in the waiting room, I was so worried. The clinical nurse specialist, Fiona, saw me and she took my hand. It was the first time I had met her and she took the time to put me at ease. The team have been so reassuring. They’re really kind and attentive and go out of their way for you. I’m so privileged that I have a team I can trust.

“It doesn’t matter who you see: they know all about you, your side effects, and they’re able to help. They never rush you and they’ll see you as long as you need. I can phone the clinical nurses if I’m worried and they get back to me straight away, so I know I have that support in between appointments.”

She added: “My myeloma is undetectable now. They got me through it, and I got to see my son get married on Saturday 18 October. For me, the wedding was the thing to fight for.”

Myeloma affects over 33,000 people in the UK. And there are more than 2,300 people living with myeloma in Scotland.

While it is incurable, myeloma is treatable in the majority of cases. Treatment can lead to periods of remission but the cancer will inevitably come back.

In the UK, around 1 in 2 people with myeloma have to wait more than 5 months before they get the right diagnosis.

In hindsight Beverley had had niggling backache and a sore leg for years prior to her diagnosis, but she’d put it down to working as a nursery nurse and the strain of carrying children.

When she started getting excruciating pain in her chest she consulted her GP, who ordered scans and blood tests. But the tests didn’t flag anything concerning at the time. She also saw a chiropractor but, far from easing up, the pain worsened.

“Initially I put it down to being a nursery nurse and carrying children all those years,” she said. “I was also helping a foodbank and carrying crates, I thought it was maybe wear and tear. But then, it was in my rib cage along my breastbone. I went to a chiropractor but the treatment didn’t make much difference. The pain in my chest was excruciating. It was taking my breath away.

“My husband noticed I was stooping, which I didn’t do before. I think I stooped to relive the pain without realising.”

Things came to a head in October 2024, when Beverley’s chiropractor “came right down on top of” her during a session. She was in so much pain, she could hardly walk.

Unbeknown to her, he’d broken her pelvis in five places.

Beverley went on holiday to Croatia the next day as planned, but called her GP the moment she got back home.

She was diagnosed with myeloma three days later.

“The chiropractor came right down on top of me and I remember thinking, ‘Oh my God’,” said Beverley, who previously worked as a charity community coordinator.  “The next day I couldn’t walk. I still went on holiday to Croatia and I don’t know how I did it. I came back and the GP sent me for an X-ray that day. I remember the woman doing the X-ray asked me if I’d fallen backwards. They said, ‘Do you realise you have a fractured pelvis?’. They thought it might be osteoporosis, but I was diagnosed with myeloma three days later.”

The myeloma had severely damaged her bones, which had caused her pelvis to break during her session with her chiropractor.

Beverley added: “The clinical nurse said to me, ‘Oh my word Beverley you must have had it for years.’ It was a shock. I had heard of myeloma but I didn’t realise it wasn’t curable. But I went into fight mode. The mother of a friend of ours has had myeloma for 18 years without it coming back so I was really hopeful. I just kept going. When the consultant asked me if I wanted to go on a trial I didn’t hesitate.”

Beverley was enrolled in a clinical trial and received chemotherapy followed by a stem cell transplant.

While she’s now thankfully in remission, her transplant took a huge toll on her.

“The stem cell transplant was hard physically and emotionally,” she said. “The side effects were tough, I was isolated. Suddenly I realised I had cancer. But I was determined to get through it.”

On the anniversary of her diagnosis, Beverley is raring to get back to travelling, and make the most of the time she’s been given.

“Once my chemo is finished in December we plan to travel and do all the things we had planned to do before I was diagnosed,” she went on. “I’d like to go back to Croatia because I need to put the ghost of the last holiday to bed. Sometimes I wonder when the myeloma will come back. But you might as well ask, how long is a piece of string? They don’t know, so we will just see what happens.

“My team are doing everything they can for me and they’ve given me the absolute best chance to live whatever life I’ve got left.”