Lauren Laverne reveals ‘smouldering myeloma’ diagnosis two years after cancer recovery

She announced the news on social media

Known for presenting Desert Island Discs, Laverne revealed back in November 2024 that she had been given the 'all clear' after recovering from cancer.

Today, the 48-year-old took to Instagram to issue a health update in a post in which she explained she had been diagnosed with a 'chronic condition'.

She said: "I’ve been diagnosed with something called smouldering myeloma (yes that is a weird name and no I’d never heard of it either).

"It’s an asymptomatic blood and bone marrow disorder that in some people can develop into blood cancer.

"Thankfully for me the risk of this happening in my case is pretty low.

"At the moment I feel OK and don’t need treatment.

"Most people my age who have it have no idea – it tends to be cancer survivors like me who are diagnosed early as we’re so carefully monitored.

"It has nothing to do with my previous illness or my recent surgery, it’s just one of those things."

She captioned her post: "I call it Smouldering Mye. Sounds more like a drag queen."

What is smouldering myeloma and how it gets detected

According to Myeloma UK, smouldering myeloma is an early form of the blood cancer myeloma.

In smouldering myeloma abnormal cells can be detected in the bone marrow, and abnormal protein can be detected in the blood and/or urine.

However, smouldering myeloma patients usually have none of the typical symptoms related to active myeloma and generally do not require treatment.

Sometimes, smouldering myeloma stays unchanged and never develops into active myeloma. Occasionally it may develop into another condition called AL amyloidosis, according to Myeloma UK.

Blood Cancer UK advises that it’s usually better to delay treatment if you have no symptoms or signs of damage to your bones or other organs.

If your doctor recommends active monitoring, it’s because it’s best for you and the type of myeloma you have.

This will be a clinical decision based on scientific evidence, not the cost of treatment.