A change in his hands sent this Pa. drummer to the doctor — and toward new treatment for amyloidosis

PITTSBURGH — Bob DiCola noticed something was off with his hands.

As a drummer, who has spent years keeping time with bands including the Pittsburgh PolkaMeisters and Miss Freddye, even a slight change in grip stood out.

The tingling in his fingers didn’t just feel unusual: It threatened both the 70-year-old Leechburg man’s passion for music and his very life.

The path to a diagnosis of a type of amyloidosis proved long and complex.